LMF Answer the Call Campaign

2024 Leading Men Fellowship National Answer the Call Challenge

As part of The Literacy Lab’s signature 15th Anniversary milestone, The Literacy Lab’s Leading Men Fellowship is launching a special multi-media 2024 Answer the Call Challenge to (i) amplify the voices of men of color serving in early childhood education; (ii) attract more young men of color to serve as Leading Men Fellows; and (iii) advance our 2024 fundraising and investment goals to ensure the Leading Men Fellowship is secure in expanding its reach for children, Fellows, and school communities throughout the country.

What does it mean to Answer the Call in Education?

Answer the Call is a challenge for us all–Literacy Lab staff, Fellow participants, Leading Men Alumni, education community, and wider public–to say YES to developing a culture and expectation of excellence, integrity, and care in education, by delivering measurable results for children in our classrooms and robust opportunities for men of color in their education, college, and career pursuits.

The needs of our community are too great for us to ignore any longer. Our children and our young men are hungry for change and need our support in order to reach their full academic potential.

Activate.

Become A Leading Men Community Volunteer/Mentor, Today!

There are so many ways that you can lend your time and/or talent to supporting our Leading Men throughout the school year. Sign up today to learn more about how to become a mentor, co-facilitate a professional learning community skills development session, join a local school district career day, or read with children during our Read to Lead days beginning in March.

Amplify.

Amplify Your Voice!

We are issuing a challenge to all of our educators and community supporters to share your pledge on how you will Answer the Call in Education throughout 2024. Upload your “I will Answer the Call in Education” video today, declaring how you will support men of color in education throughout 2024. You can also sign our pledge so we can show our commitment to the wider community. It’s time for us to show our children and the entire education community that we are all-in for diversifying the educator pipeline and supporting young men of color in their college, career, and life pursuits!

Upload

Apply & Share.

Apply, Share, Spread the Word!

Are you a high school (or GED equivalent) graduate without a college degree, or know someone who is? If so, our application is live for young men to become a part of our 2024-2025 Leading Men Fellowship cohort today! Help us reach our goal of having 180 new Leading Men Fellows serving in classrooms for the 2024-2025 school year!

Apply to become a 2024-2025 Leading Men Fellow in one of our select 7 regions!
Share the link to our website and our application portal to mentors, counselors, advisors, and young men who may be interested or know of someone who may be interested. (Links under resources section in footer)
Follow us across our social media platforms to learn the latest on special recruitment events happening in each of our regions where you can learn more about the Fellowship, apply for open positions, and schedule an interview!

Apply

Advance.

Advance & Donate!

We can’t accomplish our goals without reaching our fundraising targets in each of our Leading Men regions. Our comprehensive community approach to fundraising–blending public and private contributions for us to directly benefit children, Fellows and our school community–ensures that our impact is meaningful and sustainable, year after year. You can donate and financially contribute in a variety of ways. Click here to learn more on how you can give today. We will be posting announcements about new grant awards, individual and corporate donations, and other contributions throughout the year to show our progress towards reaching our big $3,500,000 goal by August 2024!

Donate