Nearly half (45%) of students in DC Public Schools are males of color. Despite improvements district-wide, there are still considerable achievement gaps between young men of color and their peers. We must work harder to ensure that all students--particularly boys and young men of color--share equally in District of Columbia Public Schools' (DCPS') progress. Empowering Males of Color (EMOC) is a comprehensive effort to change that narrative, improve the student experience, and help our young men develop the academic and social skills that lead to success. Led by DCPS, the initiative engages the entire city in an effort to prepare our boys and young men of color for college, careers and life. This report outlines highlights of EMOC's first year: (1) Working with Bank Street College of Education and the national Office of Head Start, DCPS developed a culturally responsive professional development program for classroom teachers and paraprofessionals of 3- and 4-year-olds; (2) In the 500 for 500 program, the academic focus is literacy, but the mentors build relationships to support their students both academically and personally; (3) DCPS will soon open the city's first public, all-male college-preparatory high school at the site of the the former Ron Brown Middle School, which is currently being modernized to accommodate the needs of a full high school program; (4) A competitive grant opportunity for DC Public Schools, Innovation Grants enable individual schools to address the unmet needs of their male students of color; and (5) DCPS is amplifying its recruitment efforts to ensure that boys and young men of color see teachers and role models who look like them.