"A Gathering of Leaders: Conversations in Leadership": Rashad Robinson of ColorofChange

From the "Gathering of Leaders" interview series: Rashad Robinson on ColorofChange.org

Black Men, Mental Health and Mentoring on the April 16th Left of Black

Black Men, Mental Health and Mentoring on the April 16th Left of Black

Host and Duke University Professor Mark Anthony Neal is joined via Skype by Wizdom Powell, professor of Health Behavior and Health Education at  the Gillings School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.   Neal and Professor Powell discuss her article “Taking It Like a Man: Masculine Role Norms as Moderators of the Racial Discrimination–Depressive Symptoms Association Among African-American Men,” recently published  in the American Journal of Public Health.  In the article Professor Powell details the connections between Black male mental health issues and increased health care disparities.

Later, Neal is joined, also via Skype, by Dr. Micah Gilmer, specialist in applied research and social enterprise, and a Senior Partner at Frontline Solutions—a social change organization and Joe Branch, former associate brand manager for Nike and the Senior Manager of Global Marketing Partnerships for the NBA, and founding partner of UWANTGAME Ventures. UWANTGAME and Frontline Solutions have collaborated on GameBreakers, a nationwide effort to  transform youth via Sports and mentoring. GameBreakers launched its first event in New Orleans at HBCU Dillard University during the Final Four Weekend.

***

Left of Black airs at 1:30 p.m. (EST) on Mondays on the Ustream channel: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/left-of-black. Viewers are invited to participate in a Twitter conversation with Neal and featured guests while the show airs using hash tags #LeftofBlack or #dukelive. 

Left of Blackis recorded and produced at the John Hope Franklin Center of International and Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke University.

***

Follow Left of Black on Twitter: @LeftofBlack

Follow Mark Anthony Neal on Twitter: @NewBlackMan

Follow Wizdom Powell on Twitter: @Wizdomisms

Follow Micah Gilmer on Twitter: @Micah_Gilmer

Follow Joe Branch on Twitter: @joeb_uwg

Follow Frontline Solutions on Twitter: @helping_change

Follow UWantGame on Twitter: @UWantGame

###

Black Student-Athletes and Coaches Gather for Success Summit in New Orleans

Student-Athletes and Coaches Gather for Success Summit in New Orleans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Trang Hamm, tran...@gmail.com, (503) 780-1624

March 30, 2012

Local high school athletes, coaches, and youth development experts will gather in New Orleans for a student-athlete summit using sports to bolster young black males’ confidence, education, and positive self-image. GameBreakers, a summit organized by UWANTGAME and supported by the Open Society Foundations’ Campaign for Black Male Achievement, will take place on Sunday, April 1, at Dillard University. The event coincides with the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four Championship.

Several well-known figures from the sports world, including ESPN sportscaster Mike Hill, will be leading the summit’s interactive workshops and a panel discussion on personal, professional, and academic development. The  panel, titled “The Influence of Sport on African American Males,” will feature leaders representing high schools, universities, athletic organizations, and professional sports teams, including Talman Gardner (McDonogh 35 College Prep), Vic Richard (New Orleans Recreation Development Commission), Bernard Griffith (Dillard University), Keith Gill (American University), and J.J. Polk (New Orleans Hornets).

“Athletics is an excellent platform for building up young men,” said UWANTGAME executive director Joe Branch. “Many have what it takes to play well and compete on the playing field, but off it, they struggle. GameBreakers is meant to help young men succeed not just in sports, but in the classroom, their homes, and employment.”

Almost 80 percent of black males participate in organized sports. Coaches typically become mentors and huge influencers in their lives and need better tools to help them navigate complex life issues.

“As a football coach, I know about that desire to reach young athletes and mold them into men,” said Frontline Solutions’ Micah Gilmer, who is leading the GameBreakers coaching workshops.  “We want to address that desire by offering a series of workshops tailored to coaches.”

“Our school is extremely happy to join with GameBreakers and allow our student-athletes a second to none experience in terms of reaching the next level of success,” said Edna Karr High School athletic director Roch Weilbaecher.

UWANTGAME helps high school student-athletes reach their potential in academics, athletics, and personal growth through one-on-one mentoring relationships with successful former collegiate athletes. Serving as a co-organizer of GameBreakers is Frontline Solutions, a social change organization that is helping change happen. The Admiral Center and Tides also are supporting and collaborating on GameBreakers.

For more information, visit uwantgame.org/gamebreakers and follow @UWANTGAME on twitter.

###