PEPPER PIKE, Ohio — From boys to young men; there is a unique transformation ongoing at Orange High School.
"From freshmen to senior year we all have grown as a group together and individually,” said senior James Jordan. “We’ve grown a lot.”
Each of the 28 guys enrolled in the school’s club, “Male Minority Leadership Group,” say they have gained brothers they can rely on.
“It’s a better connection because they look like you,” said senior and club president CJ Gissentaner.
The group meets twice a week. Their weekly meetings have been therapeutic; serving as a safe space to feel heard, and valued, while challenging societal perceptions. Their mission of leading with vulnerability and emotional intelligence is balanced with the group’s mission to lead community initiatives and speak on societal issues. Despite their differences, the group is united and has welcomed non-minority students as well.
“I obviously don’t look like most of the guys, but everyone is still welcoming," said senior and club vice president, Alex Khouli. “I know I can’t understand the same issues as a lot of my friends in the group, but I just do my best to do my part in this community.”
How it started
The brotherhood that is the Male Minority Leadership Group started nearly 20 years ago. The young men of the group today credit the man behind the initiative for helping them grow and inspiring them every day; Coach Ship Collins.
“I’m just glad he’s around,” said Gissentaner.
It is not just students who praise Collins for his leadership. As Orange staff member and group leader, Ashen Ward, shared, “he’s been a mentor to me even before I got to the high school. Just knowing that there are people here that understand some of the challenges that as a black man I go through.”
Collins, a veteran Orange educator and former coach, says the Male Minority Leadership Group is more than just a club for him; it is his purpose. He recalls back in 2005 a group of young men confided in him with extreme vulnerability for the first time. The coach remembers them saying, “We feel like we don’t have a space for our voice to be heard.”
Feeling marginalized his whole life while also being one of few black teachers at Orange High School back then, he made it his mission to serve young men.
“It allowed me to reflect, and I realized my purpose here,” he said.
The "Full Circle" Moment
While Collins has watched groups of boys walk away from the Male Minority Leadership Groups as men, the impact lives on.
“I was part of the first class,” said Terrence Thomas, former Orange High School student and Male Minority Leadership Group member.
Thomas says the community-first mindset instilled in him through Collins has grown to be his passion, which is also shared by his wife. Thomas, who is currently a Foundation Program Officer for the Detroit Lions, says serving is a major part of his role with the NFL team.
“I tell Coach Ship all the time like I wouldn't be where I'm at today if it wasn't for him and him allowing me to find myself and him instilling some of those core values in me at an early age,” he said.
The journey from boy to man is not easy, but for the guys who join the Male Minority Leadership Group, their forever brotherhood helps. The legacy filled with purpose, accountability, and service is one Collins prays to pass on to his mentee Ward.
“I believe when the time is right; yes, I'll be ready to take over and lead and hopefully inspire some men the way that he’s done,” Ward said.
