Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Greater Miami, Black Men's Advisory Council Partner to Increase Black Male Mentors
The Black Men's Advisory Council (BMAC) initiative has been developed to close the gap that exists between the percentage of black men involved in mentoring compared to the percentage of incarcerated black men and young boys.


    /Georgia News Articles/ - MIAMI, FL, August 28, 2008 -- Nationwide, women volunteer to mentor children three times as often as men, and this trend is also true in Miami-Dade. However, of the more than 500 children waiting to be paired with a qualified, screened, and trained mentor at the local Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Miami (BBBS) agency, approximately 70 percent are African-American male youth. In a time where juvenile delinquency and high school drop out is increasing at a disturbing rate, it is even more pressing to address the issue of mentoring our youth. In response to this critical gap in services faced by black youth in Miami-Dade County, several BBBS board members — Alex Fraser, Rick Adams, Courtney Williams, Martin Burkett, and Mr. Gale S. Nelson, Vice-President of Programs — established The Big Brothers Big Sisters' Black Men's Advisory Council (BMAC) in 2006.

The BMAC initiative has been developed on the basis of having currently enrolled black male mentors invite friends and colleagues to intimate receptions and events, where they learn of the critical need for black male mentors in the Miami-Dade community. By making this personal connection, BMAC has been quite successful in enrolling new mentors and is committed to closing the gap that exists between the percentage of black men involved in mentoring compared to the percentage of incarcerated black men and young boys. Through BMAC and BBBS of Greater Miami the committee hopes to collaborate with local African-American organizations, community leaders, and faith-based organizations to assist in the recruitment efforts.

For more information on the BMAC initiative and to enroll as a mentor, please contact Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Miami at (305) 644-0066 and visit www.WeMentor.org.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Miami serves more than 7,000 children and families through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships with caring adult volunteers. The Miami agency, founded in 1958, is one of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America's largest affiliate agencies. For more information, visit wementor.org or call (305) 644-0066.

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