BROTHERS Academy – A rising program for the futures of young boys

Every Wednesday at three o’clock sharp, each young man is inspected before they walk into a conference room at Gaithersburg High School. The men are checked for a tucked shirt, ironed tie, dress pants, no hats, and no gum by one of the five officers. Dressing isn’t a special occurrence, it’s an expectation. Every young man is held accountable for their actions and pushed by a connected community to reach new potential. This hidden main office conference room hosts the BROTHERS. 

BROTHERS-Brothers Reaching Out To Help Each Reach Success-is more than just a program to its members-it is their family. At brothers respect and discipline are major keystones. Each student has their own story as to why they joined, but each one has stayed because BROTHERS has become their family; even alumni come back to mentor the next generations. “We are a family,” states president Michael Nkum before every meeting. Members who have been apart of the program feel the truth to that statement. No “brother” ever gets left behind. Meetings provide a safe space, where members feel trusted. Members of the program know that if they do not own any professional clothing it is made known to them that they can contact the sponsor, Morris Hudson, who will buy them the appropriate attire for the meetings. The brother who does not own one or a few of the requirements will be provided one, with only Mr. Hudson knowing about it.

In one meeting observed, every member rose from their seats as they went around the room sharing why they joined BROTHERS and what it means to them. Responses were in retrospect to the students’ own personal experience affecting their takeaway. Some joined BROTHERS as an opportunity to meet other people, gain student service learning hours, a reason for motivation, or by recommendation. Others joined simply because extracurriculars look good on college applications. One student opened up and said it helped him sustain from drug use. Two others said they were involved in school fights and were guided into this program by their community. 

In privately conducted interviews responses were remarkable. A sophomore revealed that before he joined, he wasn’t as motivated to work for his grades and attending school not as important; he even admitted to frequent drug use. In February of 2019 his father passed away which, in turn, led to an increase in these patterns of misbehavior. Ms. Nadjibe, his caring french teacher, realized and suggested joining BROTHERS. BROTHERS has provided him with mentors that have motivated him. The student’s grades and attendance have improved since then to reach above a 3.0. He now says he can see himself graduating from college, something he could never foresee before. Currently, with a reliable network by his side.

He is just one member moved by this program. This program has impacted over 2,500 “at-risk” male students from all sorts of backgrounds in its 35 years of service. BROTHERS has just been awarded the number one mentoring program in the state of Maryland. Members of BROTHERS meet every Wednesday in a school conference room with large classroom size cohorts.

The program is notorious for teaching its members to give back in all kinds of ways. Through community involvement, it opens up the eyes of the members to be aware of issues and great acts of work around them. Senior Aaron Schwartz says it has given him a sense of purpose. BROTHERS takes part in an annual coat drive and helps facilitate events such as forums, annual walk for the blind, toys for tots, soup kitchens and many more. Members are informed about change and progression in their communities and how they can be involved. There is a sense of political education too. The variety in service is all done in groups where it is fun and the sense of brotherhood is developed. 

The founder Mr. Hudson created the program to create mentoring and to open up the eyes of these young men with great potential. Members are mentored by bringing in professionals and alumni to speak with the young men about the importance of academics and possible college/career options. Students are informed about scholarships and colleges like how and where to apply by experts. The space allows for important lessons to be taught. This in today’s world.

Many students are incentivized to do well by the rewards and perks of the program: Thanksgiving feasts, basketball tournaments, and fun group outings. Hudson has never collected a penny from any members of the program and says he never will. The big perk is the annual college tour; Morris Hudson takes a charter bus with some of the BROTHERS members down south to visit honorable universities such as Morehouse College, Winston Salem State University, Elon University, North Carolina A&T State University, Georgia State, and Bethune-Cookman University over spring break. Participants of the college tour are fed breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and get to stay in hotels free of charge. 

 Creating disciplined young men is important to the program, every member is held accountable for their academic and extracurricular success. BROTHERS has a 100% highschool graduation rate and a 70% college graduation rate. Students who fall below a passing GPA have to improve next quarter and those who did above-average are pushed and motivated to do better next quarter. One student, Justin Manda, was told he would become an officer if he increased his GPA to a given benchmark. After doing so, he was able to get a feel for being an officer but, consequently, that position was taken away by Mr. Hudson since he wanted to motivate Justin to improve his GPA further.

Within Montgomery County lie hidden gems such as BROTHERS who ensure the holistic wellness of students. One small program can make a monumental difference in the lives of hundreds of students.

 Article by Daniela Pérez of Northwest High School