Freshman create new group to help youth

The African American Coalition for Advancement, Achievement, Success and Excellence believes… The African American Coalition for Advancement, Achievement, Success and Excellence believes that in order to improve the black community, people and organizations together must instill morals and academic integrity in the minds of today’s youth.

K. Chase Patterson, president of AACAASE, led the organization’s first public meeting, followed by an extensive question and answer session Wednesday night in the William Pitt Union. The organization received its official certification from the University on Jan. 15.

“It is a responsibility of ours to bring up our future leaders,” Patterson said. “If we show them advancement, achievement, success and excellence, then all they can do is follow what we’ve done.”

The group, manned and established by a group of self-proclaimed “ambitious” freshmen, seeks to change the “problems facing the African American community” through tutoring and mentoring, according to the group’s constitution. They began this process when they had Leeann Younger speak. Younger is the executive director of Summerbridge, an educational summer program for middle school students.

“We get students when they’re looking for a meaning in life, and we provide them with life changing experiences that dramatically improve their chances of getting into college,” Younger said. “We are looking for people to love [students] into learning.”

Summerbridge takes students from high schools and colleges in the area and pairs them with a small class of five middle school students. The teachers are then matched up with professional teachers that provide guidance and support.

“Middle school students emulate us and want to be us,” Patterson said. “They care what we think, but the problem is that too often we don’t care what they think.”

According to Younger, the Summerbridge student body is 70 percent black students, 25 percent white students, and 5 percent Latino and Asian students. These students have an 85 percent acceptance rate into four-year colleges, compared to public school students who only have a 70 percent acceptance rate, where many of these students attend two-year schools or military academies, according to Younger.

“I chose Summerbridge for our initial meeting because they reinforce what we want to do within our organization,” Patterson said. “They take at-risk students from our community and give them the opportunity to excel.”

Members of Black Action Society, Blackline and Freedom attended the event. During the question and answer session, many of these students concentrated on why Patterson chose to create a new group instead of merely joining one of the others.

“It is our responsibility to make sure younger students know what’s going on, to pass the torch,” Patterson said. “I don’t believe many organizations, as a unit, are doing that, but there are individuals who are doing that.”

Candice Williams, vice president of Freedom, commended AACAASE and its motivation.

“I think it’s a wonderful organization,” Williams said. “To take a group of all freshman and create an initiative like they have is inspiring.”

Maria Smith, the Blackline chair for BAS and a conductor for Freedom offered similar encouragement.

“The need for community service will never diminish, so the organization has room to do what it’s set up to do for a very long time,” Smith said.