INSIDE OUR SCHOOLS
Volunteering at the Martin Luther King Coalition “Day on Not Off,” January 2020 at John Muir High School. (L-R) Logan Davis, Quincy Nolan, Preston Kealing, Leon Cablayan, Director, Eddie Gorton, Hunter Davis, and Chris Nolan (Photo – Felita Kealing)
In 2016 the Pasadena Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Alumni reached out to Marshall’s campus for prospective students to take part in a 4-year program. This program was brand new in the Pasadena area and these Marshall students would be the first to test the program’s capabilities.
By Preston Kealing
I was happy to be a part of the Kappa League Program at John Marshall High School. The mentors of Kappa League primarily educated the young men in lessons on how to navigate the world in a respectful and dignified manner as a person of color. The meetings’ agendas heavily focused on informing the members about prioritizing different aspects of our lives, this includes identifying a support system that is capable of helping us, as well as, setting academic and personal goals. On top of this Kappa League introduced its participants to a variety of different career paths, volunteer opportunities, and college experiences.
Career options
Kappa League shared seemingly countless resources and connections. They were able to secure a tour of the NBC Studio, the Press Box of Angels Stadium, and introduce us to a variety of other career options. These excursions first and foremost provided information on what it takes to secure a career, and secondly encouraged the Kappa Leaguers to practice networking and developing contacts.
Volunteering
Volunteering was a cornerstone in the Kappa League experience. The members volunteered at Beautification Days, fed the homeless in Central Park in Pasadena each Thanksgiving morning with Union Station, were Ambassadors at the Annual Taste of Soul Event in Los Angeles, and collected toys for an Annual Toy Drive to donate to the Boys and Girls Club. Through volunteering the Kappa League mentees learned how being selfless benefits others in the communities that really need it.
College prep
Kappa League meetings end for the members as we move forward to college which has been the goal since the first meeting. The mentors, as always, provided resources that will benefit their proteges. The Kappa League visited a number of colleges that house a strong Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity presence in the SoCal area, notably Occidental College and Cal State University Northridge. However, a very special opportunity the Kappa Leaguers experienced was a weekend stay on CSUN’s campus with five other Kappa League organizations from around California. This excursion directly exposed all the young men to life on a college campus, as well as seminars on physical and mental health, innovation in business, and leadership in a community. One of the most helpful resources for college prep was the private SAT tutoring the members received monthly. The tutor was available every month for all four years.
(L) Principal, Dr. Mark Anderson, (Center) Hunter Davis, Toshiki Kizer, Preston Kealing, and Javier Chavez-Gonzalez. 2nd from right Eddie Gorton, Kappa League Director (Photo – Felita Kealing)
Final celebration
As Covid-19 hit we were restricted to have the final celebration planned by our mentors. Our final celebration like most during the Spring was a Virtual Zoom Event. It was the Kappa League Mentors along with our families sharing our experiences and final remarks. The mentors had a previously recorded video that provided encouragement, reminding us to push forward, persevere, to set and accomplish our goals. We talked about our relationships and how we were positively impacted by the program. Prior to the event each of us had received an envelope and were asked to keep it sealed until the celebration. At the given time we opened the envelopes to reveal each of us was gifted with a $1500.00 scholarship.
Lasting impressions
The Class of 2020, the first cohort of Kappa League, are now graduates. Our regular sessions, networking, and conversations have come to an end. However, the connections, the lessons, the information, and the relationships will last well past graduation.
Preston Kealing, a Marshall Fundamental Class of 2020 graduate, will be majoring in anthropology at UC Riverside.
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated is a majority-black Greek letter college fraternity organization that has a nationwide presence on and off college campuses. Kappa League is a subsidiary of Kappa Alpha Psi and is a mentorship program for high school aged students to develop skills and resources that will lead them to attend a four-year university and be successful in their ventures outside of high school.
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