Durham,
NC, August 22, 2003—Last
spring, three underclassmen at Duke University wanted
to help dispel the notion that Duke's
affluent student body was indifferent to the surrounding
Durham community. Working in concert with Professor Tony
Brown's "Leadership-in-Action" class, Katherine
Young, Amar Shah, and Bob Benion contacted Big Brothers
Big Sisters of Durham and Orange Counties, eager to begin
a program where Duke students could become mentors to the
area's youth.
"There's
a little bit of a gap everyone talks about between Duke
and Durham," said Benion. "We wanted to do
our part in closing that gap."
Just
months into the creation of Big Brothers Big Sisters at
Duke, a student run organization in conjunction with the
BBBS area chapter, Benion and his fellow founders have
seen their idea flower into a rapidly growing partnership
with area youth. As many as a 100 Duke
students will be paired with Durham children this Fall, a number which Benion
feels will only rise as more students become aware
of the program's existence.
"We've
just had an overwhelming response from students who want to do this so badly, because they had been a part
of something like this in the past," he said. "They
were really excited to join. We had something like 150 attendees [at our Spring meetings] which
far exceeded what we expected."
The
initiative these students continue to show in seeking out
new mentors has impressed the local Big Brothers Big Sisters
agency.
"These
Duke University students have embarked on a wonderful opportunity
for local kids," said Kimberly Breeden, Executive
Director of Big Brother Sister of Durham and Orange Counties. "With our signature
one-to-one mentoring program and the energy
of the student volunteers, it won't
take long for our kids' to learn that
success is not far from home."
Tom
Metzloff, professor of law at Duke University since 1985
and faculty advisor to the newly created program, strongly
believes that the Duke initiative has a chance
to grow and become a model for other area colleges and universities
to follow.
"I
was very pleasantly surprised to find how active the students
have been," he said. "I think
the potential exists for a substantial
program. In other university towns, Big
Brothers Big Sisters, often has a very strong connection with
students. It is such a natural connection for university students to become youth mentors."
Benion
hopes the bonds formed between the Duke community and area
kids will cement that connection. A sophomore from
Milton, Pennsylvania and defensive tackle on the Blue Devil football team,
Benion coached elementary school basketball
teams through high school. He feels the program has great
potential to take off, particularly because so many Durham
area children are in need of an older friend to look up
to.
"Hopefully
there is no ceiling [to the program's success," Benion
said. "We'd like to have as many matches
as possible, because right now around 150 kids are waiting
to be placed with a Big Brother or Big Sister. The need grows every day."
Big
Brothers Big Sisters of Durham and Orange Counties is a
non-profit, affiliate agency of Big Brothers
Big Sisters of America. The local
agency, founded in 1998, serves the
youth, ages 6 through 16, in Durham and
Orange Counties. Through the agency's
signature "one-to-one" mentoring
program, volunteers are matched with
children to provide support, guidance and friendship as
they grow to become more confident and caring individuals.
To learn more, volunteer or contribute,
visit its Web site, http://www.bbbsdo.org.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is the oldest and largest youth-mentoring
organization in the country, serving 220,000 youth in one to one mentoring
relationships in 5000 communities nationwide. It was founded in 1904 in New
York City. National headquarters are in Philadelphia, PA. The organization
will be celebrating its 100th anniversary next year,
in New York City. For more information,
please see www.bigbrothersbigsisters.org.
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