In this reflective essay, Alan McCullough Jr., Felton Morrell Jr., Bernard Thomas III, Vincente Waugh, and Nicholas Shubert with their teacher, Amy Donofrio, share the youth self-authorship methods that empowered them to transform their labels from "at-risk youth" to "at-hope youth leaders" in Jacksonville, Florida. After…

Trevor Greene, the 2013 MetLife/NASSP National High School Principal of the Year, empowers staff members and students to be the best teachers and learners they can be and provides the community resources to support them. In this article, Greene, principal of Toppenish High School in Washington, shares his biggest motivator as a school leader and…

Less than fifty percent of African American students graduate from high school. Their educational failure is built into the racial structure of curriculum, standardized testing, teacher preparation programs, and even teacher recruitment pathways. "Shut Up and Listen" argues that African American students should be taught to navigate and resist the…

This article discusses how the white savior syndrome renders the misrepresentation of the potential of people of color to resist and lead the transformation of oppressive conditions within their own social context. Indigenous resistance requires endogenous (internal) leadership such that all social justice actions derive from and continue to flow…

This paper tells the remarkable and compelling story of Leonard Covello, a ground breaking progressive educator who worked tirelessly to shape public education in New York City during the first half of the 20th century. Covello was the founding principal of Benjamin Franklin High School (BFHS) in East Harlem in the 1930s. The author invites…

As neocolonial institutions designed to assimilate American Indians to European American cultural and religious values, social institutions, and economic practices, most schools run by the federal government and missionaries during the first part of the twentieth century sought to suppress all or most aspects of their young students' Indian…

The author had been a high school English teacher for 15 years when her district transformed two traditional high schools into 10 small schools of choice. In this article, the author shares how the staff of one small school, with the help of professional development and a true sense of empowerment, created a small school culture and aligned the…

Although the author wanted to read Bemak, Chung, and Siroskey-Sabdo's article in an objective sense, her response to their article is most likely influenced by her own experiences as an African American female and mother of an African American daughter. To her, the paramount issue facing African American females is the double and sometimes triple…

Much has been written in recent years about the concept of empowerment, particularly as it relates to urban youth of color. The author agrees with Bemak et al.'s underlying premise that much of what is written about and practiced with respect to the empowerment of African American youth makes the assumption that counselors somehow empower young…

Writing the article entitled "Empowerment Groups for Academic Success: An Innovative Approach to Prevent High School Failure for At-Risk, Urban African American Girls," Fred Bemak anticipated that there would be mixed reactions, given the unique and non traditional approach to working with a difficult and typically underserved population. The…

Children come to school with a variety of factors impinging on their academic success (Rose, 1998). The impact of these factors varies in degree. Furthermore, children from high-risk urban areas may experience barriers that not only hinder academic success, but also support their disengagement from educational institutions. Therefore, working with…