Mentors Show The Way To Terrebonne Parish Youths

HOUMA, LA (AP) — Corion Gray, 18, wants to set an example for the young men of Terrebonne Parish.

         As he walked down the halls of Southdown Elementary this morning in crisp professional attire, a little boy stopped him in his tracks.

         "Are you still teaching the bad kids?" the boy asked. Gray chuckled and nodded.

- Sponsors -

         This is the second year the Tru Leadership Mentoring Academy has made its presence felt in parish schools. Gray and his friend Kina Simmons established the program last year to empower youths to stay in school and provide them with positive role models.

         The parish School Board recently endorsed the program and allowed them to establish a presence in all parish schools.

         "If they're disciplined, have a good attitude and make good grades, then everything else is going to fall in line," Gray said, noting the program's emphasis on self-discipline and academic excellence across all age groups.

- Partner Content -

Sunni LeBeouf

Black History Month Spotlight This Black History Month, Cox Communications is proud to recognize Sunni LeBeouf for her prolific record of professional achievement, civic philanthropy,...

         Meeting bimonthly, the 18 mentors customize their approach to the needs of each age group, 5 to 17, of students with behavior problems, he added. The younger kids often require rewards, visual stimulation and verbal reinforcement; the older ones, a sense of friendship and authenticity.

         At Southdown, Gray and fellow mentor William Scott Jr., 32, told the group of boys sitting before them that they were part of a "secret brotherhood" called the Elite 13.

         "But you can only join in the fun things if you're doing what you're supposed to do in the classroom," Gray warned. "Not talking back, not getting in trouble and keeping your grades A's and B's. I don't accept C's."

- Sponsors -

         "Your shirt has got to be tucked in at all times. The top button of your shirt needs to be buttoned up at all times," he added. "That's how we represent ourselves."

         "You're leaders of the school," Scott said. "The elite."

         Almost all of the boys scrambled to tuck in and button their shirts. One pointed out that two of his seatmates had unbuttoned shirts, who promptly fixed them.

         Each boy was then instructed to write two secrets about themselves on a card and put it in a box they would later pick from. At the end of the session, Scott recalled that most of the cards said, "I am smart."

         "No kid is a bad child," Gray said. "Most of them are dealing with trouble at home. The majority of the bad kids are actually smart kids."

         "That's where we come in," Scott added. "We try to pull that out, understand what's going on and show them a different way."

         At Houma Junior High, Scott and Gray switched tacks with the four ninth-graders at the session. This time, they sat around a table to discuss sports and school.

         "I used sports in junior high and high school to motivate me with my grades," Scott said. "I wasn't the best child as far as behavior in junior high especially. But once I joined the football team, that was everything for me. I wanted to stay on that football team, so, basically, I had to keep the grades up."

         "If y'all are even thinking about playing ball in school at any time, grades are very important," he added. "No ifs and buts."

         Gray gave another example of a high school football star being turned down for an LSU football scholarship because of his low grade-point average.

         "When colleges come look at you, you could be Lebron James, but if they don't see the right GPA, they ain't coming to get you," Gray said.

         Before leaving, the teens pounded fists and shook hands with their mentors. Gray reminded them about his brother Corey Butler's funeral, scheduled this morning at Living Word Church in Schriever.

         Butler, 18, died Oct. 28 in a shooting on Morgan Street in Houma that left three others injured, one critically.

         "Even after the tragedy's over and my brother is gone, like I told him, I do this to help somebody else's life," Gray said. "I couldn't save him, but I do this to help somebody else. Years and years from now, we're still going to be doing this work. . The movement starts before and after the tragedy happens."

         – by AP/ Reporter Maki Somosot

         For more information

 

 

Digital Sponsors / Become a Sponsor

Follow the issues, companies and people that matter most to business in New Orleans.

Email Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter