Young, Gifted and Black - Chicago Youth Excel at Toy Design

Students from Chicago's Perspectives Charter School were semifinalists in the Sally Ride TOYChallenge. Read all about it.

TOY Challenge is as national toy design compeition for 5th-8th graders. The contest is designed to engage middle school-age students, especially girls, in science and engineering and to inspire them to pursue careers in those fields.

Young, Gifted and Black - Texas Filmmaker Records Soldiers Difficult Return Home

Ya'Ke Smith's award-winning Hope's War is the story of a U.S. Soldier's struggle to adapt back to everyday life after he returns home from Iraq. The University of Texas graduate student made his first film in high school. Read all about it.

Young, Black and Gifted - Perserverance Pays Off For Shanice

Shanice Strobhart of Savannah never thought college was possible. Now all of her work has paid out with a scholarship from a local media company. Read all about it.

Young, Gifted and Black - Spotlight on Dance

This week's installment of Young, Gifted and Black honors the legacy of Katherine Dunham. The legendary dancer, educator and activist who made her transition on Sunday May 21, 2006. Dunham inspired generations of young people to pursue dance and make sure that African-American faces were represented in dance schools and on dance stages across America.

Read about Ayisha McMillan, a black classical ballet dancer with the North Carolina Dance Theatre.

Aisha's career has been one of discipline and persistence. She remembers when one ballet company's comments aimed to defer her dream in an interview with Mary Curtis of The Charlotte Observer in 2004.

"Ballet just doesn't seem to be your cup of tea. Why don't you try going to Broadway or something?" she was told by one ballet company -- after 16 years of training.

"Eight-hour rehearsal days are spent entirely in front of mirrors," McMillan says, "and there were too many times that I had to fight back tears when I saw my own reflection."

From a 1997 New York Times story on blacks in classical ballet, she learned that of the 495 dancers in the 10 major companies, 23 were black. If she gave up, it would be 22. She became more determined.
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A salute to the efforts of brown dancers in brown tights!

Young, Gifted and Black - The Beginning

In a world where there is a plethora of news stories about African-Americans making bad decisions, causing grief and presenting images that are less than favorable, this site aims to shed LIGHT on those that are Young, Gifted and Black.

When I was younger, they called my Generation - Generation X. The "X" factor - the unknown. And unfortunately, that X was not a tribute to Malcolm. It was often accompanied with words like "misguided" and "lost." Gee thanks!

That offers a lot of inspiration!

Don't believe the HYPE. Yes, we have it harder in some ways than the generations before us. There are less resources. Our natural environment is decaying. And competition is bringing to life some terrible behavior.

However, there are those out there who still represent those that are YOUNG, GIFTED and black. In all sorts of fields. The best is still yet to come.

From week to week, I'll provide links to those I come across.