For
Parents Raising African American Adolescent Males
D
ear Parents,
My name is Jelani Mandara and I am a professor at Northwestern
University. I am writing to invite you and your son to be a part of a
culturally sensitive workshop designed for parents of African
American males. Although many parents have done a wonderful job
raising African American males, the transition to high school can
often be a difficult adjustment because of all the unique social
pressures that African American males deal with. Consequently, many
of our sons begin to under perform in school and engage in risky
behaviors.
I have spent several years studying the specific things that we as African American parents can do to best support our children’s achievement and mental health and how to help them deal with social pressures. I simply study those African American parents whose sons did very well in school and life. I have found that those parents use several specific practices that many of us are not aware of, which can have a tremendous impact on our sons’ futures. I then use the workshop to teach all parents what those highly successful African American parents do.
Eligibility:
Parents of African American adolescent males ages 11-16 can participate.
What to Expect:
Parents will attend 8 workshop sessions, once per week.
Sessions will be offered once during a week night and once on Saturday each week. Parents can choose to come to either of the two sessions.
Each session will last about 2 hours each.
What You Should Know:
Workshop: This workshop is free and will be offered at a convenient location in your community.
Childcare Provided: Childcare will be available for parents who need it at no cost.
Meals Provided: Food will be served at each workshop session.
Transportation: Transportation will be provided for those who need it at no cost.
Compensation: Parents and sons will complete two survey questionnaires. Parents will be paid $40 and then $50 in cash for completing the surveys. Sons will receive $20 and then $25 in cash for the surveys.
To learn more and to sign up online
To sign up online please visit http://www.parentingproject.northwestern.edu. You may also call us at 847-467-2807 or call Bette Wilson at the Oak Park Multicultural Education Department at 708-524-7700. You can also contact me directly at my personal email address: j-mandara@northwestern.edu.
I really hope you join us!