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Vaden Bovell In Celebration of BHM

We have received a stellar story from our student Vanden Bovell, from Brooklyn, New York, studying Social Work. He explains his passion for his work and his community.

"Hello, my name is Vaden Jonathan Bovell, 28 years old and a current senior majoring in Social Work. I am from the Clinton Hill/ Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY. I chose social work because I’ve always had a passion to help people especially the people of color in my community. And I love to have the opportunity to give back to my neighborhood. After I graduate from colleg e I will continue to keep working as a peer youth advocate with Families on the Move. My job is to help youth in the Black community and ensure that they maintain their human rights while aiding in skill development in all areas of life such as education, health, housing, employment, and relationships. As a youth advocate, I help to prevent these youth from experiencing diminished self-esteem while interacting with adults who hold professional authoritative roles in their life.”

"The people t hat guided me throughout my academic journey would be both, my parents, because they have encouraged me to have a voice and speak up for what is right and to become a successful leader just like other Black leaders did during their prime. My dream goal before my graduation is to take the next step into being a community organizer and to help my neighborhood become whole again which is what I plan to do in the future."

What does Black History Month mean to me?

“It is an annual celebration of achievements by African-Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of blacks in U.S. History. I’ve drawn so much motivation from learning about Black History. That has influenced me to become the person that I am today, because of our leaders Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, Malcolm X and Medgar Evers.” These strong men and women are the “reason that we look up to them and stand up for our rights. I believe in honoring the legacy of our black leaders” past, present and future “so that African-Americans now can integrate history left behind to build our nations moral obligations and change norms.Furthermore, my Journey at York College has been a blessing because I didn’t expect to make it this far in my life. After all, I will be graduating this year in the spring to obtain my bachelor’s degree. I have planned to be a leader by example and help People of Color live a healthy lifestyle as well as give back to my community. This is my story. Vaden Jonathan Bovell”

We would like to give a warm thank you to Vanden for sharing his story in celebration of Black History Month!