PROGRAMS

Spread the Word

Overused though it is, the proverb it takes a village to raise a child is an apt approach to youth development for the many Black and Latino/a youth coming from homes in which generations of blood and virtual family have traditionally had a significant role in their upbringing. The Brotherhood/Sister Sol was created to provide a critical link between families, schools and the community, increasing our members' access to guidance, enriching experiences, resources, and knowledgeable and caring adults. Our youth development model fuses culturally relevant content and teaching with social emotional learning, helping our members thrive and excel, acquire self-knowledge, and form meaningful connections and commitments. For the last 10 years we have provided informal guidance to community and school based colleagues. Spread the Word (formerly Community Outreach Program) is our comprehensive initiative for:

Spread the Word components are:

Liberating Voices/Liberating Minds is our publications and professional development initiative.

Liberating Voices/Liberating Minds Publications
include anthologies of our members' writings, curricula and other materials developed and published by Bro/Sis for distribution to community and school based educators, the general public and organization friends. Each of our programs will eventually generate at least one book. Current and upcoming Liberating Voices/Liberating Minds publications are:

Brother, Sister, Leaders: The Official Curriculum of The Brotherhood/Sister Sol
Voices of The Brotherhood/Sister Sol
Off The Subject: The Words of Lyrical Circle of The Brotherhood/Sister Sol Why Did This Happen? Content, Perspective, Dialogue, A Workshop Model For Developing Young People's Reflective Writing (forthcoming)
The Brotherhood Speaks

Liberating Voices/Liberating Minds Institute
includes workshops and trainings for educators interested in: 1) deepening their understanding of the important social issues facing Black and Latino/a youth, 2) learning pedagogical strategies for supporting the academic and social development of these youth, and 3) expanding their own knowledge of Pan African and Latino history and culture. Our workshop series is an interactive training providing a virtual Bro/Sis experience. Through doing hands-on work in collaboration with other educators, participants learn our strategies for group building, helping youth explore our 10 Curriculum Focus Issues, implementing single-sex and rites of passage programming, and developing curriculum. In keeping with our commitment to collaborate with public institutions so essential for providing educational and leadership development opportunities for low-income and working-class students of color, professional development activities will also include partnering with a public university. Professional development activities utilize our publications to take youth workers and teachers through our workshops, strategies, impacts, and challenges. Trainings are coordinated for organizations and schools in New York City and in other US cities, particularly those having large Black and/or Latino/a populations. Each participant receives a copy of our curriculum, access to ongoing support during the year of training and the opportunity to build and sustain a network of youth workers.

We are currently developing a Liberating Voices/Liberating Minds International Institute for teachers in Africa and Latin America, specifically in the countries in which we conduct our International Study Program for our teen members. This Institute will center on strategies for utilizing a holistic, progressive pedagogy while focusing on Pan African history, gender issues and rites of passage activities. With our experience and success as community educators working in locally, nationally and internationally, we believe we offer an understanding of and respect for African and Latino history and culture that enables us to bring out issues that can be challenging to address.

Through active outreach and recruitment, community members, college students, activists, and professionals participate in our program as mentors, tutors, guest speakers, and activity coordinators. Community involvement in our programs enables us to maintain strong community ties and further extend the network of support for our youth.