These are 14 of the bright students sponsored by Merrill Lynch:
BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The New York chapter of Sojourn To The Past today announced the launch of its second expedition to Southern civil rights era sites from the historic African American landmark at Weeksville, at 1698 Bergen St., between Rochester and Buffalo Avenues in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, on Thursday, June 14, 2001.
Beginning at 10 a.m. and ending at noon, the send-off event will feature student speakers, civic leaders, social justice advocates and New York-based civil rights era veterans. At the conclusion of the program, thirty-five participants from Brooklyn and Manhattan public high schools, Medgar Evers College, and independent preparatory schools will board a bus for the first leg of a remarkable, life-changing journey. Upon their arrival in Washington, DC, Sojourn's NY contingent will rendezvous with 20 students from Northern California.
Twelve schools in all will be participating in the expedition. Fourteen students from Middle College H.S. at Medgar Evers, Paul Robeson H.S., New Utrecht H.S., Packer, Dalton, and Medgar Evers College will be supported by scholarships from Merrill Lynch. Ten students from Horace Mann, Trinity, Nightingale-Bamford, Browning, Calhoun and Phillips Academy will be underwritten by Prep For Prep. Eight participants from Medgar Evers College will be supported by an award from CUNY's SEEK program. The college students will be marking the 30th anniversary of the founding of Medgar Evers College.
Sojourn's travel-study itinerary includes Washington DC, Atlanta, Tuskegee, Montgomery, Selma, Birmingham, Jackson, Hattiesburg, Little Rock and Memphis. By way of a "living history" syllabus - books, documentaries, recordings and on-site visits with civil rights veterans - lessons of tolerance, nonviolence, personal courage, compassion, forgiveness, faith, hope, justice and civic responsibility will be imparted by civil rights era veterans.
Joan Maynard, founder and Executive Director Emeritus of the Society for the Preservation of Weeksville stated, "Weeksville is the ideal historical site to launch these students on their pilgrimage to the South. Their lives will be powerfully influenced by visits with living heroes like John Lewis, the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, members of the Little Rock Nine and other champions of freedom. I hope all the supporters of this program will continue to provide opportunities to expose more of our young people to the learning experiences that Sojourn's NY Chapter has brought to our community."
Sojourn provides an opportunity for students from New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles to travel to the South and study the civil rights era in intimate settings. Since February 1999, the program has conducted 13 civil rights travel-study expeditions. More than 1000 participants have met with movement veterans who have imparted the program's ethical lesson plans. Medgar Evers College (CUNY) in Brooklyn is providing a 3-unit college credit course for New York's Sojourn alumni.
Name School Elizabeth Curtis-Bey Packer Marie-Dumesle Mercier Dalton Marlene Veras Medgar Evers Middle College H.S. Erica Samuel Medgar Evers Middle College H.S. James Steward Medgar Evers Middle College H.S. Clarisa Henriquez Medgar Evers Middle College H.S. Tahani Hesham New Utrecht High School Christina Vargas New Utrecht High School Nathalie Parris Paul Robeson High School Nicollette Piaubert Paul Robeson High School Durran Dunn Paul Robeson High School Lakisha Lucas Paul Robeson High School Kizzy-Ann Antoine Paul Robeson High School Steven Wells Medgar Evers College