Published: Saturday, January 28, 2012, 5:50 AM

By Charley Honey | The Grand Rapids Press

The statistics are rough if you’re a low-income young person in West Michigan these days — just as they are for young people all over the state.

A report released this week finds 20 percent of Kent County children live in poverty, just shy of the statewide rate of 22 percent. Nearly half of them qualified for free or reduced-price lunch, according to the Kids Count in Michigan Data Book 2011. Kent’s high school dropout rate of 12.8 percent was 73rd out of 83 Michigan counties.

Heard enough? Wait, there’s more. According to the Education Trust-Midwest, a nonprofit advocacy group, Michigan students’ school performance is in a tailspin compared with other states, especially among low-income and African-American students. Michigan fourth-graders’ reading scores have fallen to 35th lowest in the country on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The 34-point reading gap between black and white fourth-graders is America’s second-highest, and black students’ scores rank dead last.

I could cite more stats, such as the rate of child abuse and neglect nearly doubling in Kent County and tripling in Allegan since 2000. But they’re all variations on the theme of how an ailing economy affects the youngest among us, while governments cut funding, and churches and nonprofits struggle to fill the gap.

Miracle Michael

But let me tell you another compelling fact: Michael Bates is not a statistic.

He is a young man rising through tough circumstances to attend Cornerstone University, where he is studying for the ministry.

Don’t ask me how a kid whose parents were drug addicts, and whose dad is still in prison, ends up studying biblical hermeneutics at a Christian college. I don’t know how a kid mostly raised by his grandparents ends up caring for his ailing grandfather, buying groceries and running a paper route.

How does a young man like this stay off the street to help build a church and aspire to the ministry? Only Michael can answer that, and he does without hesitation.

“God said, ‘I want you to be a pastor,’” Michael, 19, told me one afternoon at Cornerstone, recalling the call he sensed as a senior at Central High School. “I just know God broke my heart. I saw it the way he saw it.”

Struggles abounded

If that sounds simple, it’s not. Michael went through a lot of trouble before he heard God paging him. Lots of partying his junior year. Messing up in school. Getting in a bad fight.

“I don’t know why,” he says of that period. “I was just really angry.”

That makes sense. His folks battled cocaine addiction and were in and out of prison since he was a toddler. His grandmother died when he was in eighth grade, and his grandfather developed dementia.

But his mother has been clean for five years and sees Michael every week at their church. Lateesa Smith has great hopes for Michael even as she pulls her own life back together, taking college courses online.

“He’s always had a lot of faith in God,” she says of her son.

For that, she gives much credit to Pastor Troy Evans. He started The Edge as a hip-hop church forged by his own experience of the streets, detailed in his book “The Edge of Redemption.” Evans and his wife, LaDawn, took Michael in for a time after he had an appendectomy, ending his senior basketball season.

“I could hear God a lot clearer,” Michael said of his time with Evans.

What kids need

Clearly his belief in God has helped Michael get where he is. But stories like his don’t happen in a vacuum. A caring pastor like Evans can make a big difference. But social resources must be mustered, and political decisions made, to change the grim statistics that Michael defies.

A group called Believe 2 Become is working to close the achievement gap for disadvantaged youth in Grand Rapids. It’s a wide-ranging partnership of churches, social service agencies and foundations that provides after-school and summer programs for students, as well as preschool and advocacy programs for parents. It’s linked to Gatherings of Hope, a service network of more than 700 congregations.

I learned of Michael through Believe 2 Become, which featured him and other successful students on billboards last year. His was called “Beating the Odds.”

He’s still trying to beat them, by the way: He needs a job to help pay his college bills.

‘There’s hope’

Can every kid born into hard circumstance beat the odds as Michael has? Obviously not all do, but meeting Michael makes it easier to believe they can.

“I have a sense of joy now,” he said. “There’s hope — that’s what it is. That’s what I have the most.”

First Community Meeting in the B2B Central Zone – over 800 community members gathered. /Photo by April Galbreath

Wednesday night, members of the community gathered as a part of the LINC News Bureau and discussed the work of Believe 2 Become (B2B) within the neighborhood. Believe 2 Become is a collaborative partnership of hundreds of organizations and individuals who believe in the unlimited potential of Grand Rapids children. LINC Community Revitalization, Inc. is leading the neighborhood engagement work for the initiative.

Rashid Robinson, a local business owner and community leader, stated that Believe 2 Become “has had a great impact, there has been 100% social turn-around, in regards that people are having a new social leadership perspective.” He added, “People are coming together and starting to discuss social needs while hearing other viewpoints on social needs in the community.”

Anna Ruffin, a resident and Believe 2 Become volunteer, had similar thoughts on the initiative, stating, “B2B has impacted organizations to make motions, make movement to impact discussion and create awareness in the community since the program has begun. Businesses are starting to upgrade and open their dimension of thinking.”

Believe 2 Become is offering real opportunities to children and their families in four Grand Rapids neighborhoods. Through kindergarten readiness programs, after school and summer learning opportunities and community gatherings where parents and neighbors can come together in support of their children’s success, B2B is aiming to eliminate the educational achievement gap by 2020.

Jerry King works for Wellhouse, an organization that helps transition people from emergency to permanent housing within the community. King was not very familar with the B2B initiative but learned that his work at Wellhouse could easily tie in to Believe 2 Become. “As you stabilize adults, you are stabilizing children.” With regards to both Wellhouse and B2B, he added, “It’s like being a chameleon. You have to put on a different jacket for every person that comes in the door. There is no cut and dry manual for people. You have to take time and build a rapport one on one with that person.”

Gwen Nathan, age 67, has lived in the community since she was in the third grade. Nathan works with Hope Network and is a committed resident of the B2B Central Zone. Nathan said, “I have seen an increase in parental involvement, genuine care for people in the community and more residents out interacting together. It as been awesome to see B2B serving all ages from [infants] to adults.”

Sarah DeYoung, of Tall Turf Ministries, shared a partnership with B2B for Camp Tall Turf over the summer. “The youth got to do a lot of things they normally don’t do, [like] experience nature, learn camping skills. The camp was an incentive at the the end of the summer for those who participated in the summer learning program,” said DeYoung.

Diondra Henderson, a parent and part of the LINC family, shared, “there’s definitely a buzz around the water coolers within the local communities. It is the talk around town.”

Staci Nichols, a Community Liason for LINC, added that B2B has a known focus of including the parents of youth. “Engaging parents in youth education has a more lasting impact.”

Erin Sweeney, a Grand Rapids native, works with youth through Bethany Christian Services. Sweeney has witnessed B2B impacting the people she works with, especially the focus on the parents. “Some of our students have participated in B2B, and I’ve noticied the emphasis on parental involvement.”

Syreeta Nelson, who works in the training sector of Goodwill Industries, closed out the discussion.

“I train some of the ladies who have young children. I have seen the passion of empowering people. Outcomes and impact in the community. We have seen the wealth of this initiative because it is evident in the parents who I work with. The parents believe enough to seek better for themselves.”

About: LINC News Bureau (LINC News Bureau)

The LINC News Bureau is a project of The Rapidian and LINC designed to bring news to the people of Grand Rapids
through the eyes and ears of their fellow citizens. The bureau provides a platform for the community to tell its own
story. News is what we make out of our daily lives and how it impacts others. With training, equipment and assistance
residents become citizen journalists, capturing the life of the community in words, recordings, videos and photographs.

GRAND RAPIDS—Neighbors, parents and educators will gather Thursday to celebrate the culmination of the first phase of community planning designed to help close the academic achievement gap in West Grand Rapids neighborhoods:

When: October 6, 2011 | 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. | El jueves 6 de octubre de 2011
Where: Escuela César E. Chávez Elementary School, 1205 Grandville Avenue

• $20 gift cards to first 100 families that register.
• ¡Tarjetas de regalo de $20 para las primeras 100 familias!
• Food, raffles, childcare, transportation and prizes.
• Comida, rifas, cuidado de niños, transporte, premios.

Hosted by LINC Community Revitalization and National Community Development Institute, this meeting is the fifth of five open events in the Believe 2 Become West Zone. Believe 2 Become is a broad community collaboration that offers programs to help close the academic achievement gap in four neighborhood zones in Grand Rapids. This meeting is for residents of the west hope zone shown on the map below.

Believe 2 Become is a collaborative partnership of hundreds of organizations and individuals who believe in the unlimited potential of Grand Rapids students, and expect them to succeed. By creating real opportunities for students to become the people they aspire to be, Believe 2 Become aims to close the achievement gap in Grand Rapids by 2020.

Believe 2 Become, a neighborhood initiative designed to help children succeed in school, work and life, is a collaborative effort of Grand Rapids Public Schools, Grand Rapids Student Advancement Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation.

Download press release

Come and see I Believe I Become, a six-panel mural featuring the vision and art of GRPS students with local artists Georgia Taylor and Marco Riolo at DeVos Place downtown Grand Rapids.

September 21 – October 9

Viewing Hours

Opening Day 6PM-10PM
Monday-Thursday Noon-8PM
Friday & Saturday 12PM-10PM
Sunday 12PM-6PM

Special thanks to Buist Electric for underwriting this year’s 2011 I Believe I Become ArtPrize Project.

GRAND RAPIDS—A team of artists and carpenters from Rockford Construction will install a massive student mural at DeVos Place Monday as part of this fall’s ArtPrize competition. With support from several local businesses and two local artists, a team of student artists from Grand Rapids Public Schools has created the mural to showcase their interpretation of I Believe I Become.

I Believe I Become is the rally cry for a Believe 2 Become, a local education initiative now in its second year. The Believe 2 Become initiative serves students in the four neighborhood zones highlighted on the map below. About 15,000 children live in the four zones.

Underwriting for the I Believe I Become student ArtPrize project came from Buist Electric.

Other supporters include Rockford Construction, which provided studio space and installation support; Standard Lumber, which provided the plywood panels for the art; Modern Hardware, which provided primer and paint; DeVos Place, which is hosting the mural; Grand Rapids Public Schools, which provided the use of a digital projector; and Grand Rapids Student Advancement Foundation, which served as fiduciary for the project.

“The students created the concepts for six large panels that show what I Believe I Become means to them,” said Taylor. “We created initial studies digitally, then projected them onto the panels. Then the students sketched and painted their interpretations.”

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Sophie Rodrigez has a passion for photography.”I like to take pictures of nature, and old buildings. As I get older I would like to incorporate people into my work.” she states. Art is very important to her because it’s almost like a “venting system.” She has expressed that someday her pictures will make a difference in other people’s lives. For Rodriguez, being an artist means making a positive difference in people’s lives. She says, “To me it means having an imagination and using it!”

A volleyball player at Creston, Rodriguez wants to be successful and to make a difference. “It’s going to take dedication, support, and a lot of hard work.” She intends to pursue her art, continue in sports and possibly study photography in the future.

Maurica Stewart likes all types of art mediums, however, the ones that catch her eye the most are 3D chalk art, sculpture/ceramics and video game design. “The creativity I see in these pieces, always inspire me” she says. “Not only is art what I need to complete my goals in life but it is also what allowed me to meet my first good friend when I was in middle school. Other than that it helps me think better, understand concepts, and communicate my ideas/feeling better.”

For Stewart, art means having the openness to try something new; having the ability to make something, anything, for a cause. She states, “The most important thing I think being an artist means is keeping an open mind and being creative.” Stewart has taken art classes at the West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology and will be attending Center for Creative Studies in Detroit in 2012.

Georgia Taylor is the founder of Salon 477, a grassroots art movement based in Grand Rapids that gives voice, training and support to artists. Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan to a family of artists, Taylor spent much of her young life involved in art programs and summer camps, including those offered by the Kalamazoo Institute of Art, and received continual inspiration from her mother and grandmother. In 1999, she moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan to attend the distinguished Kendall College of Art and Design where she earned her BFA and made a name for herself with her lifelike sketches, soulful paintings and uncanny ability to capture the essence of a moment in a photo. Taylor’s art came to embody the vision articulated by artist and painter Jeffery Smart, who stated, “It’s not a matter of painting life, it’s a matter of giving life to painting.” Soon after her graduation from Kendall, Taylor’s ability and passion captured the attention of world-renowned artist Paul Collins, and she interned with him for over a year.

Marco Riolo has been using his artistic talents his entire life. His parents were the most influential in his life as they continually encouraged him to have fun and creative talents. Early on his appreciation for great artists such as Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo and local artist Jim Finney began to mold his style. A native of Grand Rapids and graduate of Michigan Tech University, Riolo is a direct sales representative for an international food science company. He continues to expand his talents through illustration, live art, snow sculpting, ice sculpting, and murals. In collaboration with Georgia Taylor and student artists on the I Believe I Become ArtPrize project, he is helping inspire, encourage, and teach the process of mural making.

The I Believe I Become student ArtPrize mural will be on display in DeVos Place September 21-October 9.

Believe 2 Become is a collaborative partnership of hundreds of organizations and individuals who believe in the unlimited potential of Grand Rapids students, and expect them to succeed. By creating real opportunities for students to become the people they aspire to be, Believe 2 Become aims to close the achievement gap in Grand Rapids.

Believe 2 Become, a neighborhood initiative designed to help children succeed in school, work and life, is a collaborative effort of Grand Rapids Public Schools, Grand Rapids Student Advancement Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation.

GRAND RAPIDS—On Tuesday, September 6 at 7:10 a.m., students arriving at Burton Elementary and Middle Schools will be greeted by a red carpet, photographers and enthusiastic fans.

 Burton Elementary & Middle School
2133 Buchanan Ave SW
Grand Rapids MI 49507

 The enthusiastic fans will include local doctors, lawyers, accountants, pastors, educators, artists, musicians and more, all present to show their support for and express their belief in Grand Rapids students.

The host of the event: Grand Rapids Public Schools and backers of Believe 2 Become, a neighborhood initiative now in its second year. The initiative serves students in the four neighborhood zones highlighted on the map below. About 15,000 children live in the four zones.

Celebration! Cinemas is providing use of the red carpet, and LINC Community Revitalization helped invite professionals to come out and show their support for the students. Believe 2 Become invites everyone in the community to express their belief in Grand Rapids students by signing a pledge at www.ibelieveibecome.org. Names of supporters will be published in the coming months.

Download the original release.

GRAND RAPIDS—A team of visionary and creative art students from Grand Rapids Public Schools is creating a massive mural to enter into this fall’s ArtPrize competition with support from several local businesses.

Local artists Georgia Taylor and Marco Riolo are working with student artists from Grand Rapids Public Schools. Students on the creative team are Sophie Rodriguez, a junior at Creston High School, and 2011 Ottawa Hills graduate Maurica Stewart. Students on the production team are Robert Daylie, Zaylie Bebee, and Luiz Farfen. The mural will be on display at DeVos Place during ArtPrize.

The subject of the mural: the students’ expression of I Believe I Become, the rally cry for a local education initiative now in its second year. The initiative serves students in the four neighborhood zones highlighted on the map below. About 15,000 children live in the four zones.

“We asked the students what I Believe I Become means to them,” said Taylor. “I think their artistic expression of this concept is going to take your breath away. It’s about the power of hope and potential and youth and the human spirit.”

Several local businesses are supporting the project. Buist Electric gave a generous cash contribution, Rockford Construction is providing studio space, Standard Lumber and Modern Hardware are donating materials, and DeVos Place is sponsoring a reception featuring the mural on October 1.

Believe 2 Become is a collaborative partnership of hundreds of organizations and individuals who believe in the unlimited potential of Grand Rapids students, and expect them to succeed. By creating real opportunities for students to become the people they aspire to be, Believe 2 Become aims to close the achievement gap in Grand Rapids by 2020.

Believe 2 Become, a neighborhood initiative designed to help children succeed in school, work and life, is a collaborative effort of Grand Rapids Public Schools, Grand Rapids Student Advancement Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation.

Download official press release.

*Leer este artículo en español | Read this article in Spanish

José Vasquez and his family attended LINC Community Revitalization’s Believe 2 Become West Hope Zone planning meeting on Thursday. The meeting was the first of five neighborhood planning meetings to discuss improving children’s literacy focused on high school graduation for all.

Vasquez’s daughter, Diane, will start at Cesar E Chavez Elementary next year. He aims to provide her with the opportunities she needs to be successful in school.

“I came to get tips. How can I talk to [my kids]? How can I help them in school?” Vasquez asked. “How can I be a little bit better parent and that way, [we can] be a better family?”

The Festivities

The event kicked off with an outdoor performance by musical guest  Grupo Akaray with dancer Laura Armenta. Then neighbors filed into the gym for tacos and cake, and enjoyed a live drumming performance, Grupo Tarasco, and the work of artist Erick Pichardo.

The energy in the room skyrocketed when LINC’s bilingual Director of Neighborhood Services Ana Doonan and Eureka Smith of the National Community Development Institute took the stage. They led a round of applause for the children in the room, distributed door prizes, encouraged everyone to high five one another, and chanted the Believe 2 Become motto in Spanish and English.

Believe 2 Become Nitty Gritty

The Believe 2 Become initiative is based on three main ideas: all children have unlimited potential, our community expects great things from them, and we must create real opportunity for our children to graduate from high school and college to prepare them for viable careers.

“It’s a movement to save our children,” said Edwin Hernandez of the Douglas & Maria Devos Foundation.

“All kids here have the potential to graduate,” said City High School graduate Rafael Martinez during the meeting. “Let’s make a difference!”

And the first step to making a difference, according to the Believe 2 Become plan, is to listen to community voices of parents, kids, teachers, and educators.

Jose Vasquez and His Neighbors Plan for the Future of their Children

The packed cafeteria split off into small groups to discuss the following question: “What’s keeping our children from achieving academic success?”

One of the groups discussed the need for English and Spanish education for parents; another group discussed topics like gang violence, drugs and the lack of positive after-school activities for children.

After the initial community planning meetings, parents and community members will work on action planning to solve some of the issues that arose in the small groups on Thursday. When everything comes together, the community will decide on a master action plan to improve children’s literacy in the West Hope Zone.

See What It’s All About

The next community planning meeting will be held on August 4 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm at Cesar E Chavez Elementary School.  All West Hope Zone residents and service providers are invited to attend.

THE RAPIDIAN

As part of its push for education and careers in science, technology, engineering and math, Believe to Become is partnering with NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and GMiS (Great Minds in ScienceTechnologyEngineeringMath) to bring Summer of Innovation experiences to Grand Rapids Public Schools middle school students enrolled in summer school and Believe 2 Become summer learning academy programs.

GMiS Viva Technology™ Parent Night
Thursday, July 14, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

GMiS Viva Technology™ Student Day
Friday, July 15, 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Ottawa Hills High School (Map)
2055 Rosewood Ave. SE

Through its Summer of Innovation initiative, NASA demonstrates its commitment to summer learning and the positive effects it can have on students. NASA’s goal is to increase the number of future scientists, mathematicians, and engineers, with an emphasis on broadening participation of low-income, minority students. Through partnerships with Believe 2 Become and other entities across the country, NASA is using its substantial assets — including the agency’s scientists and engineers — to create summer learning programs.

“This is an incredible opportunity for Grand Rapids students to experience science, technology, engineering and math in a fun, interactive and engaging setting,” said Dr. Bernard Taylor, Jr., superintendent of Grand Rapids Public Schools. “We are grateful that NASA and Believe 2 Become are bringing such exciting summer learning experiences to our students.”

The Believe to Become (B2B) Initiative is one of four efforts in the Midwest selected for a strategic collaboration with NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. To support the implementation of NASA Summer of Innovation projects, Glenn Research Center education specialists have trained more than 90 certified teachers and 40 informal educators to engage 2200 underserved and underrepresented middle school students in hands-on, inquiry-based activities this summer.

Local students will experience those activities on Friday, July 15. On Thursday, July 14, their parents will learn how encouraging student interest in math and science could positively impact their child’s future career and financial opportunities. The parent component will be presented in both English and Spanish.

On Friday, about 400 students will experience a day filled with hands-on competitive and educational exercises designed to explore math and science concepts. Highlights will include a Rocket Launcher challenge and a Science-Technology-Engineering-Math Jeopardy game. Attendees will work in teams led by engineering and science college students from surrounding universities and colleges including Grand Rapids Community College, Grand Valley State University, Davenport University, and Creston GRAPCEP. They will also have the opportunity to interact with NASA Glenn Research Center and Believe 2 Become community leaders.

NASA Summer of Innovation began in 2010 in support of President Barack Obama’s Educate to Innovate campaign for excellence in science, technology, engineering and mathematics education. NASA’s missions and programs provide compelling and dynamic content to show the career opportunities available in those fields.

Targeted at middle school students, Summer of Innovation uses a variety of approaches and experiences to engage the students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Designed to help close the academic achievement gap for students who live in four B2B zones (shown on the map below), Believe 2 Become is supporting 34 local summer learning academy programs this year.

Viva Technology™, the national K-12 educational program from Great Minds in STEM, engages students, parents and teachers in activities that show the correlation between math and science studies and exciting careers in technology.

Believe 2 Become is a collaborative partnership of hundreds of organizations and individuals who believe in the unlimited potential of Grand Rapids children, and expect them to succeed. Believe 2 Become is creating real opportunities for children and youth to become the people they aspire to be. www.ibelieveibecome.org

-end-

Download official press release