Dr. Curtis Lewis named Black Historical past Month Sport Changers honoree – MLB.com

William Gregory
DETROIT — Dr. Curtis Lewis works to offer younger Black males with male function fashions within the classroom.
A local of Chicago, Dr. Lewis was an undergraduate at Michigan State College earlier than educating grade college in Lansing.
“I began as a trainer, then ran some different packages for college kids who have been expelled,” Dr. Lewis mentioned. “That work really sparked my curiosity in going to get my doctorate as a result of I felt there was some points that we have to tackle in instructional system.”
Dr. Lewis is that this 12 months’s third Black Historical past Month honoree within the Ilitch Sports activities + Leisure Sport Changers collection, which celebrates neighborhood members making a profound distinction in Detroit. In partnership with Comerica Financial institution, the Detroit Crimson Wings and Detroit Tigers acknowledge one Sport Changers honoree per week throughout choose months all year long to obtain a $1,000 grant devoted to the charity of their alternative.
After attaining his PhD from MSU, Dr. Lewis was the founding principal at a college in Detroit now referred to as College Prep Artwork and Design Elementary. At that time, Dr. Lewis started to emphasise variety amongst his educating hires to get the very best outcomes for the varsity.
“It’s essential for me to have the very best, extremely certified lecturers within the college for our youngsters,” Dr. Lewis mentioned. “I did that work and seen that it was a excessive variety of males that have been in my college on the elementary college stage, which is uncommon.”
Realizing there was a niche to fill within the assets for and quantity of Black male lecturers, Dr. Lewis created the Black Male Educators Alliance (BMEA), whereas persevering with his work as a principal.
BMEA recruits and enhances the skillset of Black males in southeast Michigan pursuing schooling. In an trade that employs extra girls lecturers than males, Dr. Lewis mentioned he believes it’s essential for male lecturers to set an instance for younger males in the neighborhood.
“You’ve received to see your self in individuals who you look as much as, who’re round you, so that you just see this as a risk,” Dr. Lewis mentioned.
Dr. Lewis left the Ok-12 area in 2022 to deal with BMEA full-time and function assistant professor and the Director of the Grasp’s in Educating and Curriculum Program at MSU. With extra funding, Dr. Lewis has expanded BMEA.
“We now have expanded our focus to working with faculties to create laboratory areas for all kids, and we now have trainer and principal fellowships,” Dr. Lewis mentioned.
One other initiative BMEA has began is the Youth Management Improvement Program (YLDP). Utilizing analysis from a Lansing mentoring program that Dr. Lewis directed in 2006, the YLDP pairs youthful males with male excessive schoolers for area journeys to fulfill enterprise professionals and native school professors.
“Children are feeling extra assured in who they’re. They're gaining confidence, tutorial confidence,” Dr. Lewis mentioned. “They're socially and emotionally capable of navigate their feelings higher to determine methods to cope with battle and anger and frustration. We've been noticing they’ve a way of belonging, and due to this fact they're extra assured, which suggests they're partaking extra, which is resulting in much less disruptions and extra tutorial engagement.”
Dr. Lewis is on the forefront of an schooling revolution in metro Detroit, and Ilitch Sports activities + Leisure is proud to acknowledge him as a Sport Changers honoree throughout Black Historical past Month.
"Being acknowledged as a Sport-Changer is a superb honor! I'm wanting ahead to, and I wish to play an enormous function in, making this top-of-the-line locations to coach kids,” Dr. Lewis mentioned. “The place we’re considering innovatively and creatively round how we have interaction children within the studying course of.”

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