Project ENRICH Director Willie Hines: Why Essay Presentations Are Critical

Bro. Hines listene to presenters

By Bro. Willie Hines

Project ENRICH is a very special program designed to improve the college preparedness for African American student in Prince George’s County, Md. One of the staples of Project ENRICH is the essay oral presentations. The students’ abilities to sell themselves, market themselves, win and influence people will depend largely on public speaking.

On April 23, at Bowie State University Thurgood Marshall Library 25 students came display their oratorical and compete for incentive awards ($300 first place, $200 second place and $100 third place) per grade level. The Freshmen topic, “ Was Bill Clinton the first Black President”, Sophomore topic, “ based upon the strife young Black men and women experience on a daily basis, does the criminal justice system need to be reformed for the sustainment of the Black Community”, Junior topic, “Is the Black Community in a state of emergency”, and Senior topic, “Predatory subprime mortgages victimized Black America, resulting in decreased college educational opportunities for Blacks”

The topics were designed to make our students think, analyze and most importantly become aware of issues facing their communities and the factors limiting educational opportunities in their pursuit for excellence. The students did an incredible job utilizing their personal experiences and performing extended research to defend their positions. The oral presentations were judged on content, style, organization, realism, and mechanics. A three judges were used to evaluate the students’ oral presentations and provide a professional
critique.

The oral presentations are a true measure of the growth and confidence of Project ENRICH students. Watching the improved written and oral skills from freshmen to senior year is a great metric of the success of the program. You can visit Project ENRICH on the web at www.projectenrich.org

Social media sites: www.facebook.com/projectenrichprogram
Twitter (@projectenrich)

Visit our Facebook page for more photos and videos