Jefferson Parish Cops & Clergy Coalition

Empowering Youth through Academics & Enrichment Programs

For many children in Jefferson Parish, the sound of the dismissal bell marks the change from a bustling school day to a lonely afternoon. Some dread going home alone to face homework they know they cannot grasp. Others may have problems in their home lives and dread going home altogether.

No matter the circumstances, these are the children that Jefferson Parish Cops & Clergy Coalition (JPCCC) has set its sights on helping.

During the last two decades, the Marine After School Academy has offered students and their families a sound solution to facing an empty house after school. An offshoot of Marine Baptist Church, what first started as a church-based tutorial initiative is now a community-based academic enrichment program serving mostly at-risk children. At least fifty percent of the children in the program have a parent in prison, according to Marcia Peterson, a member of the JPCCC and a board member at Marine Academy. “We target kids who are either in the judicial system or we target kids to keep them from going into the system,” she said. “We are grateful to have a relationship with Cops and Clergy and with the parish judges because we feel that our intervention has deterred young people who just needed that second chance.”

For two hours Monday through Thursday, students from kindergarten through 12th grade have access to professional educators from all backgrounds, including the performing and visual arts. They participate in focus groups, described as a form of group therapy, and benefit from life skills training. Mental health professionals are available on an as-needed basis. Academics, however, are the main focus with homework assistance at the forefront. When students reach the 9th grade in the Academy, they become Junior Peer Mentors.

Terrah Averette-Harrison has a special place in her heart for Marine. She attended the program as a little girl in grammar school and re-entered the program as a teen, serving as a junior peer mentor. After earning a master’s degree in education, Terrah once again returned to Marine. She is now the program’s director.

While she admits to having excellent grades as a child, she says she was reasonably shy and lacked the social skills necessary to be a leader. She says the program equipped her with those skills. “It helped me figure out what I was passionate about,” she said. That passion is teaching eighth grade English in the Jefferson Parish Public School System.

Terrah knows Marine Academy students are smart and capable. At the same time, she realizes they may not be in ideal home situations where education is considered paramount. Her vision for the program is one where all of the students know that they can excel in school and become anything they desire. “We don’t want them to look at their present situations as excuses to repeat past negative behaviors. We really want them to be better than their circumstances,” she said.

The Nineveh Baptist Church members are also active with their youth. From academic assistance with high stakes testing and specialized Black History programs to mentoring programs and field trips, Nineveh has developed programs that foster growth and academic achievement. Program Director Yvetta Chesser said the LEAP and GEE tutoring is spearheaded by two certified teachers, Carmen Stewart Davis and Tanika Reese Adams (both hold master’s degrees) who volunteer one day each week to help fourth, eighth, 10th and 11th grade students. Additional volunteers are also on hand to assist the students with lessons. “We make a concentrated effort to address specific problems students are having with the tests. Last year, all of our kids passed with ‘basic’ scores and one achieved the ‘mastery’ level,” Yvetta said.

Similar programs are occurring on the West Bank, as well. During his 17 years as a bus driver, Pastor Robert Davison of Ephesus Missionary Church in Westwego saw many students act up in school and eventually get expelled. He recognized that their behavioral problems were tied to their academic failures.

When he began his ministry, Pastor Davison vowed to mentor students in order to give them the academic support they needed to succeed in school. “I tried to set up something in the neighborhood that would help the kids. Every weekday from 4 until 6 p.m. any child from anywhere can come to the church for a free after school study program. A certified teacher is on hand as well as volunteers to assist with homework needs,” he said. On Saturdays, young men are invited to participate in structured activities geared towards character development and overall enrichment. After these activities, the youngsters attend fishing trips or field trips with their mentors.

As a board member of JPCCC, Pastor Davison said Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand works closely with him and other church leaders to make funds, enrichment opportunities and office space available. “We want to provide our youth with a positive environment in which they can reach their full potential. By providing positive reinforcement in academics, healthy role models and fun experiences like Saints and Hornets games, we are making an impact. We are showing them that rewards are a result of hard work and dedication,” Normand said.

When Deidra Blanche-Decay started the Awesome Ladies of Distinction Mentoring Program for girls in her home ten years ago, she had no idea the impact it would have on the surrounding community. Blanche-Decay said people in the Woodmere area of Harvey started asking for something that included boys, too. The Awesome Kids of Distinction After School Tutoring Program emerged. Bridging kids from where they are academically up to their mandated grade level expectation is the ultimate objective. “We try to build that foundation in the elementary kids before they get to the fourth grade to take that LEAP,” Blanche-Decay said.

Parents will tell you, however, that the classes do so much more than that. Each child is assessed before a course of action is plotted. While tutors work to reinforce skills that may be lacking, they also keep up with their current class work. Students are taught based on their individual ability and pace. Character development and accountability are stressed, and kids are encouraged to participate in class and speak up when they have questions. Building confidence is a key component of the program.

Awesome Kids also has an academic summer camp. Offered as soon as school lets out until it resumes the next school year, this camp is a far cry from a babysitting service. Children commit to academics every day from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m., with the fun and games in the afternoon. Children learn life skills, attend field trips and discover the vibrancy and distinctiveness of the local community.

At Second Zion Baptist Church in Marrero, Schwanell Nicholls feels she has truly found her calling. After teaching in the Jefferson Parish Public School System, she joined the ministry as the director of youth programs following Hurricane Katrina. She said the after school program uses a holistic approach to education, providing not only academic assistance but also enrichment activities, hot afternoon meals and adult literacy classes for the children’s parents. “We want our students to see that the world is a bigger place than the community in which they live. They deserve everything the world has to offer,” she said.

Dominion & Power Ministries in Harvey assembles a team of education specialists every summer to kick off their Learning Style Strategies Summer Institute. Children are assessed both academically and medically before they start the camp. Vision and hearing screenings are included in the cost, and medical and mental health professionals are on hand to address any situation that might need attention. Character development is discussed and taught; crisis intervention services are available if needed. Kids learn empathy for others through pet care and real-life experiences. Kathy Patterson, a speech and language pathologist and learning styles coach, is the director of the camp and the curriculum coordinator.

Patterson, along with Dominion pastor Bishop Jerry Henry, would like to see the same type of program replicated after school. They are currently working to secure funding, perhaps through the JPCCC. “We can definitely see a need, and our parents agree,” said Bishop Henry. One parent wrote in a letter about the summer program, “Please continue doing such awesome work and consider providing more programs such as this throughout the academic school year.” Henry knows that a partnership with Cops & Clergy is a positive for everyone involved. “It means the world to programs like this. When you get law enforcement involved with the church, it’s a win-win for everybody.”