CANTON ‒ A group of fourth grade Canton City Schools boys are on a journey to become their best selves.
The journey will be long and challenging, but by the time these youngsters graduate from high school, they should have the skills needed to succeed and become leaders regardless of their path in life.
The Future 40, described as a leadership club by creator Terrance Jones, was created this year when Jones asked school officials to select 40 brown and Black third graders to participate in a project for the district’s Black History Month celebration.
The participants were chosen based on character and potential for leadership ability, not how they perform in school or their behavior.
“It was gender and culturally specific,” said Jones, a graduation coach and workforce development coordinator. “These kids came together for a ‘we thing,’ not a ‘me thing.'”
During the celebration, the boys recited a mantra led by Superintendent Jeff Talbert. The kids promised to work hard, work together, own their work, speak their truth and empower others.
“I am somebody. … I will be the best version of me. These are not just words. This is my declaration to myself and my community. Don’t give up on us. Push us. Prepare us. The best is yet to come.”
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“It was powerful. It was impactful,” Jones said. “To hear them say it very proudly and in an innocent way to make a public commitment to what they want to do and are willing to do. That was the concept of the Future 40 from that moment.”
From that point, Jones was committed to fostering a pathway that leads to success for the kids.
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Talbert took on the job of making sure he and other leaders live up to the promise of teaching the students to realize their potential.
“I think experiences and exposure to opportunities that exist for them are just as important as the literacy and numeracy skills they are going to need to be successful,” Talbert said.
Deidre Stokes Davis, the district’s director of human resources, is helping to develop the group.
It’s important to provide participants with core values of excellence, leadership skills and help them build community, she said. They want to expose the kids to the success stories of students who walked the same hallways and lived in their neighborhoods.
“They realize I can be somebody. I can do that,” Stokes Davis said. “It’s amazing to see the kids pay attention.”
Last week, a retreat was held at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the first event to bring the boys together since their appearance at the Black History Month event.
It was an opportunity to come together and learn about leadership, meet men of integrity and learn how they can become positive contributors to their community, Stokes Davis said.
“Ultimately we want them to become a success story and how connecting to that vision and mission now can lead to their success,” she added. “We want to intentionally expose these young lads to other parts of their community and give them hope to really live the mantra they recited.”
Hall of Famer Dan Fouts
While at the Hall of Fame, Talbert joined the kids to remind them why they were there.
“You have an opportunity to meet people and learn,” he told the kids. “Here at the Hall of Fame, it honors and celebrates legends. Why are we here? So we can give you tools and opportunities to learn things so if you want to do what I do, or be a doctor, or a football player, or a lawyer, race cars or fly planes — you can.”
Besides touring the Hall of Fame, the students met with Hall of Famer Dan Fouts.
Fouts, a quarterback for the San Diego Chargers for 15 years, told the boys the greatest thing he garnered from playing the game was the lifelong friendships he formed with teammates.
“You need friends,” Fouts explained. “You need people you can count on and they can count on you. They will be there for you and you will be there for them when they need you.”
Fouts told the boys to work hard in everything they do, something that requires learning as much as they can.
As the students faced a new year likely at a new school, Fouts said, things are going to be different. He reminded them to take a deep breath, look around and get a feel for the room and then look for a familiar face.
“You got to be ready to be the best student you can be,” he said. “You have to be prepared and pay attention.”
Going forward, Jones and Stokes Davis want to provide the students with mentoring, additional support in and outside the classroom, and build leadership skills and pride in their community.
As they spend more time with the students, they will take a holistic approach: tracking attendance and grades and meeting regularly with the students, their families, teachers and principal to provide individual help for their specific needs.
“Our goal is to have them understand their choices have consequences,” Jones said. “We want them to be able to hold themselves accountable in their academics, in sports or whatever they do.”
Reach Amy at 330-775-1135 or amy.knapp@indeonline.com.
This article originally appeared on The Independent: Canton City Schools’ new Future 40 programs for boys
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