FEBRUARY 2022
We're Back in Schools!
YEMBA is offering programming on-site at Oak Park’s middle schools for the first time in 20 months, due to the impact of COVID-19. Special thanks to District 97 for recognizing the value of our programs, especially given the toll the pandemic has taken on the mental and physical health of our youth.
The Mentoring Empowerment Program (MEP), Mentor Empowerment Training (MET) program and the Students Taking Action Regarding Success (STARS) programs continue to make a real difference in our students’ lives by providing life skills, social emotional tools for combating substance abuse, poor self-images, and harmful choices, financial literacy and college/career readiness.
Welcome Amari Wilkerson!
YEMBA is pleased to welcome Amari Wilkerson as our new program director! Amari was part of YEMBA’s first class, and we are so proud of her progress since she left us. We’re thrilled to have her back, where, as manager of YEMBA’s MEP, MET and STARS programs, she will serve as an excellent role model for our students.
Amari joined YEMBA in seventh grade because many of her friends were involved. She appreciated having a safe, supervised space to share some of the struggles she was experiencing as a teenager, including the challenge of being one of few students of color in her honors math class. The program gave her the confidence to explore extracurricular activities in addition to the track and field in which she excelled.
“Many students of color aren’t given the opportunity to discover their natural talents because they’re late to the party compared to more privileged students who are exposed, at a young age, to music and dance and coding lessons,” she said.
Amari attended Howard University, where she graduated with a major in sports management and a minor in history. She thrived while studying history from an Afro-centric lens, an experience that helped her appreciate the rich contributions made by Africans for centuries.
She wants to share with current YEMBA students that pride in their own history. “Before slavery, Africa had kings and queens and some of the most developed countries in the world. The continent is rich in both natural and human resources. I want our students to understand that, despite systematic oppression, they can still do anything they put their minds to.”
This year, Amari will be focusing on ways to grow participation in YEMBA’s programs. She wants to launch a summer program for enhancing the transition between eighth and ninth grades so students are better prepared for a successful freshman year.
“I want to help cultivate future leaders of color,” she said. Leaders like Amari.
Introducing Fikir Kokeb!
Fikir (“Kir”) Kokeb is serving this year as a YEMBA intern, working with students in the MEP and STARS programs at Julian and Brooks middle schools. She is a freshman at Dominican University, where she is involved in the Beloved Community service program for African American and Black students. A graduate of Newton High School in Iowa, she is majoring in sociology and Black World Studies. She receives a stipend from Dominican for her work with YEMBA.
Kir leads discussions on topics including racism, bullying, body image, and social justice. She is also helping students with their homework.
“When I started, the kids didn’t have the best behavior and I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to handle them. But I’ve really seen them mature over the past few months. Now, when we get started, they immediately pull out their homework. They are taking the program seriously—in fact, one student told me the after-school program was the highlight of her day,” Kir said.
Share the Gift of Coffee!
We are proud to partner with Dark Matter Coffee to offer bags of coffee designed by YEMBA graduate Hasani Cannon, a talented young artist currently attending the University of Illinois-Springfield. Proceeds from the sale of this exclusive coffee will support YEMBA’s critical programs for youth.
You can purchase these exclusive bags of high-quality Dark Matter Coffee using the purchase link below!