Eighth-grader Khaled Ali has a lot of pride in his Strive Prep-Sunnyside school.
“This school is like, the best school. We’ve been learning about how it affects our community. ”
His biggest challenge? “When I’m trying to support others or deal with a new subject. The math, some of the equations with variables — those are hard.”
His brother Saber, also an eighth-grader, likes “playing sports and talking to my friends about football and basketball. The hardest part is not being in detention and getting good grades. But you have to get good grades to be on a sports team.
“And history’s kind of weird.”
Khaled: “I think history is easy.”
Saber: “I got better grades than you in history.”
When middle-school life gets tough or weird, the two boys — who were born in Yemen and whose father remains in the Middle East — have their mentor Trent Peaker to talk to.
Denver Urban Scholars was founded by Denver residents Larry and Margaret Byrne, who wanted to foster success for at-risk students who had great potential but also great challenges. Denver Urban Scholars is applying for funding for 2015.
The nonprofit provides students with anything from tuition funding to tutoring to an alarm clock or RTD pass to get them to class on time. Students may come from one-parent homes or situations where family systems have broken down.
Each student has a caseworker, but also a volunteer mentor like Peaker — an adult who spends time with them every week or couple of weeks. Peaker has taken the boys to see the race, the in Keenesburg and a game. They’ve gone to iconic Colorado places such as the and
“A lot of it is just the three of us hanging out or riding bikes,” Peaker says. Contact with the boys’ caseworker keeps him informed about their progress socially and in school, so he knows what they need to learn.
“It’s things like how to shake someone’s hand, look them in the eye. That fighting is not the solution. Khaled is team captain on his flag football team, so we talk about leadership.”
Peaker has a business project ready for the boys this fall: They’ll be helping homeowners with raking leaves and other fall chores to earn money next summer.
“We’ll open up bank and savings accounts for them. These are just some work skills and goal-setting. We’ll show them what it’s like to earn money and save money,” Peaker says.
Mentors and mentees usually stay together until students graduate so that there’s time to earn trust and form bonds.
“They’re really good brothers,” Peaker says of Saber and Khaled. “They don’t fight. They don’t talk back, or push, or hit. When we’re driving somewhere, Khaled lets Saber have shotgun, because Saber likes to sit in the front.
“I know I’ll have succeeded when they go to college,” Peaker says, and Denver Urban Scholars’ mission is to ensure that’s possible.
The boys already have it in mind.
Khaled sees himself studying chemistry or medicine. And playing basketball.
Saber? “I want to play football in high school and college,” he says.
Susan Clotfelter: 303-954-1078, sclotfelter@denverpost.com or twitter.com/susandigsin
Denver urban scholars
In operation since: 1995
Staff: 13 plus four interns.Number served last year: 177; 207 by end of 2014
Yearly budget: $960,000
Percentage of funds given directly to clients and services: 100 percent (a private grant pays administration expenses).
