A $150,000 gift from BMW Manufacturing Co. will help Clemson University place 200 African-American men as teachers in South Carolina's elementary school classrooms.
The BMW gift, which will be paid over three years, supports Call Me Mister, a project coordinated through the Eugene T. Moore School of Education at Clemson. The program, now in its third year, combines the special strengths and resources of a public research university with the individualized instructional programs offered by three of South Carolina's small, private, historically black colleges and universities. Clemson collaborates with Benedict College in Columbia, Claflin University in Orangeburg and Morris College in Sumter to recruit, prepare, certify and place 200 black males as elementary teachers in the state's public schools.
"BMW is pleased to help fund this innovative effort to increase the number of African-American male elementary school teachers in South Carolina's classrooms," said Robert Hitt, media and public affairs manager at BMW Manufacturing. "Call Me Mister has the potential to significantly impact the lives of the young men participating in the project and the lives of students across South Carolina that they will teach and mentor."
Participants are recruited out of high schools to fill a void in the ranks of teachers, where less than one percent are black males, even though minority enrollment in South Carolina public schools is 39 percent.
"The response has been astounding in so many ways," said Tom Parks, the Clemson professor in charge of the project. "We've emphasized the idea that a lifetime of teaching is not just a job but an opportunity to change the future, to make a contribution as a leader. This generous gift from BMW will be a tremendous boost to the project's future."
The Call me Mister project provides tuition assistance, an academic support system and a cohort organization to help assure success for the young men enrolled.