Olympic pursuit: Students learn history, experience success in 10th annual competition

Are you smarter than an African-centered Olympian?

Think about it before answering, because even if you can compete with the brightest fifth-graders on Fox TV’s popular trivia show, you may stumble over questions like:

• Who was the first black (and youngest ever) pilot to fly around the world? (Answer: Barrington Irving)
• At what age did Venus Williams begin playing tennis? (Answer: 4)
• What organization did Dr. George Washington Carver establish with his life savings? (Answer: Carver Research Foundation)

Students in the 10th annual African Centered Olympics were presented with these queries and dozens more recently at Wayne County Community College District’s eastern campus. The event drew participation from Detroit schools, including AlkebuLan Village, Nsoroma Institute, Denby High, Pershing High, and Hope, Marcus Garvey, Paul Robeson/Malcolm X, Osborn College Preparatory, Ronald Brown, Dixon Educational Learning and Osborn College Preparatory academies.

Hosted by Skillman Foundation grantee, Black Family Development, Inc., the Olympics are a Positive Youth Development program initiative conceived by Alice G. Thompson.

“Positive Youth Development is a way to experience success,” says Thompson, Black Family Development’s CEO. “So I said, ‘What better way to experience success than for them to learn about themselves? If they knew they came from kings and queens, how much would they accomplish?’”

In the years since the program began, Thompson says, it has become so popular that school officials often call in advance to ask about the event’s date.

Along with a traditional African drum processional, the 2011 African Centered Olympics began with the singing of both the American and Black National Anthems and a proclamation by Detroit City Councilman James Tate.

“Anytime we have an opportunity to let our children show what they can do, we need to give them a hand,” Tate told an applauding audience of about 100 family members of students and community members. “There are some organizations that don’t even last for five years – two years – but if there’s anything I can do to keep the African Centered Olympics going for another 10 years, I’m going to do that.

“This [resolution] goes down in history, so with this being the 310th anniversary of Detroit, 310 years from now, people can look back on this day.”

Teams of students representing each school in the elementary, middle and high school divisions were allowed to confer with one another for eight seconds before responding to trivia questions. Spectators enthusiastically obliged the request that they encourage students after either correct or incorrect answers were given. Contestants prepared for the African Centered Olympics by studying trivia from a package distributed by Positive Youth Development.

The evening competition featured not only numerous rounds of informative exchanges about black activists, athletes, inventors and artists, but a bit of suspense, in the form of a three-way tie-breaker in the elementary division. Nsoroma Institute emerged victorious after finishing in second place last year.

Jakeriaya Rivers, 10, shared the win with her classmates, Mendy Mbidiglaou, Tiara Raymond and Jaleesa Johnson, all 10.

“I really enjoyed answering the questions,” Jekeriaya says.

Mendy added that he liked the preparation process leading up to the competition.

“I really liked the studying,” he says. “I learned a lot of stuff I didn’t know.”

Stage fright, however, was a challenge during the actual Olympics. “I got scared on stage in front of all those people,” he laughs, “but it felt good in the end.”

Tiara and Jaleesa say that winning was their favorite part of the contest.

All students who participated in the Olympics received a “Lamp of Learning” medallion, while the winning teams earned trophies and cash prizes. Special recognition was given to Paul Robeson/Malcolm X Academy for its having participated in all 10 years of the competition.

African attire was worn by many participants in the program, while photos of great black historic figures, such as Frederick Douglass, adorned the stage. The event was educational for both adults and youth who attended, causing some of the parents and school staff to discuss the trivia questions amongst themselves.

“We’re happy that Black Family Development puts on the Olympics to help our students stay interested in the learning process,” says Malik Yakini, who heads Nsoroma Institute. “We’re very proud of how well they performed.”

“The purpose of the African Centered Olympics and all of our youth-centered programs is to celebrate all of the gifts, talents and abilities that young people possess,” moderator and Black Family Development staff member Theresa Bass told the audience. “We celebrate correct answers, we celebrate incorrect answers. We celebrate every attempt at greatness.”

Thompson calls the Olympics a means of not only encouraging the pursuit of achievement, but a vehicle for encouraging family support and involvement with their youth.

“Parents love it,” she says. “If you want to know how to engage parents, it’s not hard: Put their kids on stage.”

— Eddie B. Allen, Jr., is a Detroit-based freelance writer