SAN DIEGO, CA (KGTV) — The Men of Color initiative at Southwestern College is celebrating one year on campus. The purpose of the program is to serve males of color who may need help or guidance as they look to earn a degree.
"Research has shown that males of color are struggling academically across the state of California when it comes to retention rates when it comes to persistence and degree completion," says program
Director Dr. Keith Turner.
Dr. Turner says the program is about providing students with academic help and other resources.
"A lot of our students receive transportation assistance or gas cards and meal cards as some of our students are homeless. In the community college system sometimes our students are not taking the right courses. You can take courses here for three years and not graduate."
The Men of Color program works very closely with Southwestern College athletics. One person taking advantage is Julian Soares a player on the basketball team. However, Julian is not your typical student-athlete.
"I am 28 years old and when I moved out here my initial plan wasn't to play basketball, it was to just be a student," says Soares.
As a 28-year-old student-athlete, Julian felt he needed guidance and a mentor to be successful
in school. That is why he reached out to Men of Color.
"They connect us with tutors and I talked to Victor about setting up a mentorship. I did it to help with success in school both academically and out of school."
"As far as Julian not being the typical 18 or 19-year-old, I think our Men of Color program has helped him get the classes that he needs so he can transfer after this season hopefully."
Soares says he has the best of both worlds as a member of the basketball team and Men of Color.
"It's just reassuring knowing that I don't have to go through the whole schooling process and education stuff all on my own."
The Men of Color program is about helping students like Julian find success and a path to getting a degree.
"Our work is very intentional and it's to help students get over the hump," says Turner.
