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Michael Lofton's monthly African American Men and Boys Conference, which helps boys and men who need guidance and support, has been a huge success.
Passion and frustration pushed Michael Lofton to tackle problems involving other people's children. Lofton was frustrated with the fact that too many African American boys are lagging in performance on state academic skills exams, disrupting class, disrespecting themselves and teachers and, ultimately, ending up in the criminal justice system. His passion for helping those in need -- including New Orleans families who sought refuge in Austin last year after Hurricane Katrina -- drove him to elbow his way into schools in the Austin school district. He contacted parents, school principals, health specialists, professors, sociologists, judges, law-enforcement officials, business owners, community leaders and preachers.
In June, Lofton, 48, brought together about 200 boys, men and parents in the first African American Men and Boys Conference. He dug into his own pocket to pay for snacks and beverages for the crowd. Since that time, the monthly conference has grown larger and larger. Lofton works with principals and PTAs at various Austin schools to host the monthly conferences, which have been held at Reagan, Akins, LBJ and McCallum high schools and at Pearce and Dobie middle schools. The University of Texas, the Austin school district and local companies are sponsoring the workshops.
Typically, the four-hour Saturday conferences focus on making good decisions, managing anger, taking and passing the state's standardized test, staying in school, going to college, maintaining healthy bodies and getting help extra help with school work. Volunteers with expertise on those topics staff the workshops. The workshops first focused on boys and their academic needs. But Lofton soon learned that if he wanted to make a difference, he would have to involve the entire family. So, he aggressively recruits parents and relatives.
He has noticed that many boys are being raised by their single mothers or grandmothers, which often generates friction in the home that carries over to school. There can be issues with a mother's boyfriend, who might be disrespectful, sell drugs or abuse siblings. There can be economic or legal pressures.
"A lot of kids say they need money to help their moms pay the bills," Lofton said. "They are growing up without fathers, and that is contributing to low performance in the classroom." An Austin principal turned to Lofton to help boys at her elementary school: "We will be bringing [to the December conference] 15 to 25 African American male students (third to fifth grade). Most of the boys do not have a father who is actively involved in their lives -- if at all." Lofton believes that without mentors, role models and credible information, many boys lack the social and mental skills to navigate successfully their circumstances. He passionately believes it is up to African American men to step in and provide those skills.
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