Volunteer is dedicated to inspiring black youth
Growing up during the Jim Crow era in Gulfport, Miss., could have been a major obstacle to overcome for Ronald Lawrence. But his parents never let him, or his siblings, use it as an excuse.
His parents instilled a strong work ethic in their four children and sent all of them to college, opening up a world of possibilities for Mr. Lawrence that he might not have otherwise had.
He earned an engineering degree from Xavier University and went on to work on historically significant projects such as the first lunar landing. He’s also found success elsewhere — providing an opportunity for young African-Americans to succeed through an organization he helped establish in 1986, 100 Black Men of Western Pennsylvania.
Mr. Lawrence, 69, serves as president and volunteers time weekly to the nonprofit that works
to advance opportunities for black middle school and high school students in the Pittsburgh area. While the program serves mostly boys and young men, it helps a few female students, too. The organization tutors students in four areas of focus: education, cultural development, financial empowerment and health/wellness.
The Western Pennsylvania chapter is one of 110 chapters worldwide with more than 10,000 members and 100,000 youth who participate in the program.
“Our basic mission is to improve the quality of life in our community,” said Mr. Lawrence, who lives in Franklin Park.
And it has. The program has a substantial success rate for its students graduating from high school, and many go on to higher education.
Because of his contributions, Mr. Lawrence has been named a finalist for Most Outstanding Volunteer of the Year for the 2014 Jefferson Awards for Public Service. The winner will be announced May 4 at Heinz Field Club West and will go on to represent Pittsburgh at the national Jefferson Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., this summer.
Mr. Lawrence was nominated for a Jefferson Award by Mike Carlisle, executive director of 100 Black Men of Western Pennsylvania. Mr. Carlisle said there are numerous reasons why he nominated Mr. Lawrence, including his work with several community organizations. But his main reason was because of Mr. Lawrence’s long-term dedication to 100 Black Men.
“He is a founding member of 100 Black Men of Western Pennsylvania, and the organization has now been in existence for 29 years. To be committed to one organization for that length of time in itself deserved recognition,” Mr. Carlisle said one Saturday morning in April when a group of students from 100 Black Men were working with Boy Scout Troop 760 of Homewood to collect donations for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.
“During his time as president our [chapter] has received national recognition,” including a mentor and mentee of the year, Mr. Carlisle said.
Mack Nelson, 16, a 10thgrader at Gateway High School, was struggling in school, especially in his algebra class, before he joined 100 Black Men. Since he became involved just a few months ago, his grade went from a failing 58 percent to an 80 percent.
“The college tutors there, they just push you to keep going, stay strong, stay consistent. And it will all be worth it in the end,” he said.
Mack added that because of the program, he believes that he will be able to graduate from high school and go to college if that’s the path he chooses.
The mission hasn’t always been easy.
In the 1990s, a gang was trying to recruit one of the program’s students. The boy refused to join the gang but was under so much pressure that he shot and killed the man who was trying to turn him to gang life, Mr. Lawrence said. That student ended up in jail, but there have been other successes where they didn’t seem possible at first.
Few people gave a pregnant girl who joined the program a chance to succeed, but she didn’t want to be stigmatized. The girl worked hard enough that she graduated from high school and went on to the University of Pittsburgh.
Another boy, who had a 1.3 GPA, kept his hood on during the tutoring sessions and refused to pay attention. His relatives made the boy continue to attend, and he raised his GPA to a 3.6.
“They can do it, they just don’t know they can do it,” Mr. Lawrence said of students in the program.
“We’ve found that if you get their minds to the point where they know they can succeed,” he said, “then the battle is basically over for us.”