Institute for Recruitment of Teachers

For the past 13 years, it has been my honor and joy to serve as the Coordinator of the African-American Latino Scholars Program (AALSP) at Brookline High School. The AALSP provides academic acceleration and cultural enrichment to high achieving students of color at BHS. It has created a robust college-going and academically driven culture amongst Black and Latino pupils. As the leader of this program, I have been privileged to watch it grow exponentially. The AALSP started 15 years ago as a monthly affinity group offering 20 students a chance to talk about their experiences as students of color attending a majority white school. With time, I have been able to facilitate and manage the evolution of the program into what it is now, a comprehensive wrap-around experience which includes daily grade level seminars and provides a plethora of scholastic supports to over 110 young people. In developing and delivering the curriculum for the Scholars Program, I focus on a simple and central narrative. The history of people of color in America is rich with examples of intellectual giants who have been compelled to overcome in order to achieve. Thus, students come to see that they too have the ability to reach lofty intellectual heights if they work together and give their best effort. Data shows the program has been successful in helping students internalize that message. As a result of the Scholars Program, BHS has dramatically increased the number of students of color it enrolls in AP courses, the National Honors Society and the nation’s most selective colleges. It is work that I am incredibly proud of and know that I have IRT to thank for it.

Growing up in Baltimore City, I had been blessed to have wonderful teachers that shared my ethnic background and were deeply invested in my success.  This continued at Morehouse where I was fortunate to again have many teachers of color that challenged me to grow as a thinker and professional.  For this reason, my career path was obvious.  I was certain that I wanted to provide for young people, particularly of color, the opportunities that I had been privileged to enjoy. Though I was certain I wanted to teach, I had no idea how to traverse the grad school application process, much less how to select or finance a master’s degree program. For this reason, I am more than thankful for the recruiter that introduced me to IRT as a college junior in 2002 and encouraged me to apply. I was fortunate to be selected as an associate. This opportunity would set me on the trajectory to my doctorate and the opportunity to do the work I enjoy now.

As a 2003 associate with the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers, I was expertly guided through the maze of the grad school application process.  The IRT helped me greatly in writing my statement of purpose, preparing for the GRE and ultimately selecting Simmons College as my best match.  Participating in recruiter’s weekend was a particularly memorable experience. Interfacing with representatives from a host of great colleges as well as other members of the IRT community was invigorating. That weekend and the IRT experience as a whole empowered me and let me know that I could access tremendous support on my journey to graduate school and eventually the classroom.

I continue to be appreciative of my IRT experience. My master’s degree from Simmons and doctorate from Boston College were enabled by the program’s guidance and support. In my professional role, I consistently endeavor to pay forward the many benefits I received. As leader of the African-American Latino Scholars Program, I am able to work towards institutional equity and help mold the next generation of intellectual giants. It is complex, exciting and ultimately rewarding work. It is work that is made even more enriching as I enter a season in my professional life where I see my former students finishing college and starting careers in education on their own. Without fail, I always push every young person I work with to pursue an IRT experience. I have been overjoyed to see a number of them taking advantage of the program and using IRT’s assistance to pursue advanced degrees. I know IRT will be transformative for them in the same way it was for me.

Update: Vick is now a founding Academic Affairs Director with College Track as of 2018.