Alejandra Ceja, executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics (Initiative), will lead a roundtable discussion with students, alumni, mentors and leaders of Boys II Men (B2M) at 1 p.m. on Friday, April 11, in Aurora, Ill. A media availability will follow the discussion at 2 p.m.
U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, Clayton Muhammad, B2M Founder and currently Aurora Director of Communications, and Rick Guzman, chief of staff to Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner, will join Ceja at the roundtable.
Ceja and her staff will learn about B2M, a non-profit organization founded in 2002 in response to increased gang violence in Aurora, and its successful efforts in helping local Latino and African American youth become productive adults. In turn, Ceja will share information about President Obama’s new initiative, My Brother's Keeper initiative, which aims to create pathways to success for boys and men of color. The initiative will focus on using results and evidence to evaluate what works – and stop what doesn’t – to improve opportunities for at-risk youth, all within existing federal resources. Ceja will also discuss the Initiative’s efforts to address critical opportunities for Latino youth and the importance of college completion in our 21st century economy.