Some of OSI’s Community Fellows and alumni ended 2020 on a high note. Below is a short roundup:
In mid-December, the Baltimore Sun ran a feature on Troy Staton, of the 2020 Community Fellows cohort, and his project, More Than a Shop, which he launched in 2017 out of his Hollins Street barbershop to help address issues in the community, including health disparities, food deserts, literacy, trauma-informed care, teen sexual awareness, and elder abuse.
The Sun also featured Next One Up, founded by 2013 Fellow Matt Hanna. Next One Up is a mentorship program that provides multi-year, individualized support and mentorship for young men in Baltimore with the goal of helping them graduate high school and build strong futures. The program is planning to launch a program for young women in the city.
Also in December, B-360, the program started by 2018 Fellow Brittany Young, that uses dirt bike culture as a way to introduce young people in Baltimore to educational and career opportunities in the STEM fields, was selected as one of 50 Black-led/Black-serving nonprofits to receive a Microsoft Community Skills Grant.
