School/Community Helping Hands Mentoring Program (S/CHHMP)

Traditionally, the development and academic achievement of African-American male students have lagged behind that of African-American female and other ethnic counterparts. In 1987, the Wake County Public School System initiated an innovative effort aimed at reversing that trend and helping African-American male students take full advantage of learning opportunities.

Formerly known as the School/Community Helping Hands Project, the program, the brain child of former Superintendent Dr. Robert E. Bridges, is the result of eight years of research into the achievement levels of young African-American males as compared with other groups of students. Dr. Bridges identified four key negative factors that hinder the development of the African-American male child:

With nearly twenty years of positive existence, the program is now known as the School/Community Helping Hands Mentoring Program. The purpose of the program continues to team resources of both school and community in order to offer African-American male students unique help toward success in school and in life.

Programs Goals

The main goal of the program is to counteract negative influences that hinder the African-American male student’s academic and social development. Other goals of the mentoring program include:

Program Design

Students targeted for the School/Community Helping Hands Mentoring Program are African-American male
elementary and middle school students who are at risk of school failure. Despite the risk factor, these students demonstrate strengths that can be tapped into through the effort of a positive and supportive program. The program matches caring African-American male educators within the Wake County Public School System with identified students in grades three through eight. These Personal Models support and encourage the mentees in developing positive self-images and improving their school performance.

Community Models are matched with students when Personal Models cannot be obtained. These models are AfricanAmerican males who work in other fields within the community who demonstrate strong character, solid employment histories, and a willingness to commit time to the program. As a result of
Personal and Community role models, students benefit from both the school and the community.

For more information contact the