A
lthough the school day officially ended two hours ago, 11 high school students are still sitting in a classroom at the Baltimore Freedom Academy discussing poetry. They have just watched a video of Brooklyn artist B. Yung reciting a poem that describes his anguish at the way minorities, particularly young black men, are treated in America.
“We know there are many ways to seek justice,” says group
public high school students identified by administrators or
leader Zeke Berzoff-Cohen ’08. “What are the benefits and
teachers as facing significant challenges (academic, familial,
costs of using poetry as a vehicle of justice?”
or financial), yet who also have shown leadership potential.
Although he is the only person wearing a tie, BerzoffCohen doesn’t look much older than anyone else. But at
Freedom Academy, an East Baltimore charter school that
27, he has two years of working for Teach for America and
focuses on advocacy, service, and leadership, the students
a master’s degree in public policy from the Johns Hopkins
come from public schools throughout the city.
University Institute for Policy Studies under his belt and
They attend training sessions like this afternoon’s
recently was named in a “20 in Their Twenties” list of
for two hours a day, three days a week, for 14 weeks,
young up-and-comers by the Daily Record. It’s clear who’s
arriving by foot, public transportation, or in cars driven
shaping the discussion.
by Intersection staff members or volunteers. Each student
Three hands wave in the air. Berzoff-Cohen nods at
22
Although most of the meetings are held at the Baltimore
Dawnya Johnson, a 10th grader. “Actions are powerful,” she says. “But words are what set actions and thoughts in motion. Words get the mind going and thinking.” His goal today, Berzoff-Cohen explains later, is to encourage the students to think critically about different
also receives one-on-one academic mentoring from a staff member or a college student interning at the organization. As Johnson wraps up her remarks, Berzoff-Cohen says, “Good point. Now, let’s think about this: Can politics be used as a tool to fight oppression?” Several more hands go up.
ways of responding to social injustice. “I believe in the idea of teaching high school students the skills of leadership and then letting them lead,” he says. “I’m hoping that they’ll think about why our country is so deeply segregated and how they
HAVING THEIR VOICES HEARD “I HAVE SEEN THIS HAPPEN WITH EVERY KID...”
can change it—whether with a poem or a press conference.” Fostering leadership in high school students is the
After-school training sessions are only the beginning.
project that drives him. In 2011, he and two other Teach for
Using strategies ranging from press conferences to postings
America corps members, Matt Stern and Yasmene Mumby,
on YouTube, the Intersection each year explores and
founded the Intersection, a nonprofit organization dedicated
campaigns for issues that expand opportunities for young
to “shifting expectations for Baltimore’s young people” by
people, while also giving them the chance to advocate for
teaching them community-organization skills.
their community.
The Intersection, which is primarily funded through private donors, offers leadership training to Baltimore
Last year, students involved in the program canvassed their neighborhoods to discover what issues mattered