By Thomas Cathey | Special to The OBSERVER
A group of 24 Sacramento-area high school students have joined the next generation of young Black leaders, going beyond the day-to-day activities of school and dedicating their weekends to workshops, team-building, community service and more.
The Sacramento chapter of The Links Incorporated – the nation’s largest Black Women’s non-profit organization – hosted a celebratory event on Sunday, May 19 to honor these ambassadors of Black Excellence.
The event showcased high school juniors and seniors who have completed their signature program “Black Achievers Creating Change (BACC).” It was held at the recital hall on the campus of Cosumnes River College, with friends and family of the celebrated students in attendance.
SMUD Chief Diversity Officer Jose Bodipo-Memba addressed the crowd, and Presiding Justice Vance W. Raye of the Third District Court of Appeal gave the oath at the end of the ceremony.
About 26 years ago, The Links created the Achievers program to propel the academic careers of Black students around the U.S. and prepare them for college and beyond. “BACC has evolved every year, even better and better,” said Schery Mitchell-James, this year’s BACC program committee chair. “We’ve reached the pinnacle and we’re gonna go upwards.”
BACC offers “a robust curriculum where many of the local experts in the area create interactive modules for the kids. We give scholarships and community service projects,” Mitchell-James said. “We’re excited about what the future brings and how to expand the program.”
In a year where increasing the Black vote is especially crucial, this group of scholars also did their part in advocating and spreading awareness about the cause. They even created an online quiz to test and educate their peers about the history of the Black vote.
Several of the BACC students celebrated on Sunday were also awarded scholarships from The Links as a result of their hard work throughout the program. McClatchy High School senior Mia Williams said she’s interested in pursuing law school after graduation. Despite the hard work and long hours, Williams enjoyed the experience overall and was happy to celebrate completing the program with her peers.
“I think it really shows how much of the work paid off. There was a lot of time we spent outside the workshops, a lot of late night Zoom calls and it was a lot of work and very tiring,” Williams told The OBSERVER. “But it feels good to have really completed it all and have it all rounded up in one cohesive event.”
Other students said the program allowed them to emerge from their shell socially. Scholarship winner Zenniko Moore Jr. of DaVinci Charter Academy came dressed to impress in a sharp suit, acknowledging that he has become more confident since completing the program.
“I was pretty shy and I didn’t really talk to a lot of people last year,” Moore said at the podium at the beginning of the ceremony. “I wasn’t really in my comfort zone, but this year in the voter program — where we were talking about how we can get more Black achievers or Black people in general to vote — I grew a connection with a lot of my peers here and I just want to thank them.”
Nasiriyah Thompson, a senior from John F. Kennedy High School appreciates the scholarship money, and is even more grateful for the overall program experience.
“Honestly it wasn’t about the money as much as it was about learning to connect with my peers and The Links was very helpful for that,” Thompson said. “I’m still really grateful for the scholarship obviously and I’m just really glad that I found this program.”
Young high schoolers that are interested in signing up can already download and fill out an interest form for the 2024-2025 academic year at sacramentolinks.org.
Support for this Sacramento OBSERVER article was provided to Word In Black (WIB) by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. WIB is a collaborative of 10 Black-owned media that includes print and digital partners.