By Michael Morton
“The most important thing is letting these students to know they have a real chance to go to these schools,” said Kofi Kankam, who graduated from Harvard in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in neurobiology. Kankam shared his experiences with possible recruits during the fair, held at the Greater Allen Cathedral's Allen Christian School. More than 120 students and parents dropped by to get more information about the next level of education and heard NY 1 reporter Gary Anthony Ramsey give advice and listen to entertainment by the Voices of Victory gospel choir from St. John's University.Besides the Ivies, schools at the fair, sponsored by Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and JPMorgan Chase, included Medger Evers in Brooklyn, Baruch College in Manhattan and Queensborough Community College in Bayside, all part of the City University of New York system, and Wilberforce University in Ohio and Hampton University in Virginia, two of the nation's historically black colleges.The black colleges were created because at the time minority students were not admitted to many white universities, those at the fair said. Now that times have changed, it is important to tell students they have more options, they said.”The children need to see a full scope of what's available to them,” said Loleta Beckett-Nicholson, head of Greater Allen's Commission on Social Action. But college fairs are still hard to come by in southeast Queens, and the Ivy Leagues tend to recruit black students from the suburbs, those at the event said.”It's very few and far between,” Beckett-Nicholson said of fairs in the area, noting that it was the first time Greater Allen's annual event had drawn in Ivy League schools. Her church will offer a bus tour of black colleges in the mid-Atlantic region Feb. 24 to 26.In addition to the college fair, hundreds of southeast Queens youth applied Monday in Jamaica for 50 to 60 spots in a summer mentoring program sponsored by the Jamaica One-Stop Career Center, the city Administration for Children's Services and Southeast Queens Neighborhood Network, an umbrella group of community organizations.Coordinators of the program, open to youth ages 15 to 21 living in Community Boards 12 and 13, choose the top applicants, then help find them eight-week paid internships in the area. Participants receive career advice both at work and back at the program's office.”It helps teens get focused on a career path,” said Kelly Watts, a coordinator for Southeast Queens Neighborhood Network. The list of those selected will be announced at the end of the month.Potential candidates first heard tips from guest speakers Andre Neal, a Manhattan hip-hop music producer, and Jim Jones of The Diplomats band.”Every day I wrote goals down,” Neal said. He said most people quit before they made it to the top. “You gotta move past it,” he said.Audience members said they took the advice to heart.”It's pretty tough competition nowadays in this environment,” said Kwasi Pecou, a 14-year-old from Queens Village who wants to be a lawyer, producer or manager in the music industry.Reach reporter Michael Morton by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
