Calling All Brothers welcomes Hartford students back to school, ‘we are here to support them’

In 2015, Pastor AJ Johnson and local attorney Devon Ward put out a call to Black men to come out to local schools and cheer on the students for the first week of school in the city.

Many men answered the call and the Calling All Brothers group was born.

They came together to support the students year after year, until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Now, the group is making a comeback, with back-to-school celebrations throughout the week, starting Monday at Sarah J. Rawson Elementary School.

The group consists of faith leaders, activists, artists, educators, fraternity members and other community leaders, who work toward the goal of creating long-lasting positive change in the city, they said.

Johnson, the lead coordinator said it is important to hold the event each year.

“There’s always a negative connotation where Black men just don’t show up or are involved in a kid’s life,” he said. “We created an opportunity…for men of all walks...jobs, no jobs, degree, no degrees, children, no children, to come and have an opportunity to engage with the students in our Hartford Public Schools.”

Johnson noted that it helps students to see themselves in a different light than what they may be exposed to in their daily lives.

“It’s just beautiful to see men of color come together and support, that’s the importance,” Johnson said. “That young people see that we’re not rappers, but we’re lawyers, doctors, pastors, artists, or physicians. We’re judges. We’re nonprofit leaders. All these folks come out and volunteer to greet the kids back to school. It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing to see. So, it’s important that young people see men of color portrayed in this particular light.”

Fred Phillips, one of the leaders of Calling All Brothers, said the group specifically helps Hartford Public Schools.

“We’re targeting Hartford schools, because if you look at the neighborhoods, a lot of them are impoverished…a lot of them are single family households. So, a lot of the kids don’t get to see a lot of males…we get a lot of kids where the mother is the mother and the father, so they don’t really have a male role model step up to the plate. We try to encourage as much as we possibly can, at all times,” Phillips said.

Another leader of the group, Steven Wilson, said that he hopes that students will gain inspiration by seeing the professionals cheer them on at their schools.

“Our kids experience a lot. They see a lot. They walk past a lot, each and every day. When it comes to professional men taking the time just to have conversations with them, they welcome that,” Wilson said. “And so the hope is that they get some sort of motivation, even if it’s just like a smile for a few moments.

“Our kids won’t always hold a conversation, especially with strangers. However, multiple Black men in suits, they look professional… you have the police officer, the fire man.... As they walk into the school, they see people that reflect them that are encouraging them and showing love…these are kids and they want love,” Wilson said.

Sarah J. Rawson Elementary School Principal Annika Maybin said that it is an “amazing feeling” to have the Calling All Brothers group return to greet her students.

“We have been preparing all summer for our kids to come back into the building…So, to have the students be able to come back on their very first day, and see so many men who resemble them, look like their family members, look like them, and someone that they can actually aspire to is absolutely amazing,” Maybin said.

“I feel like our students, they need that. It was great to have them here welcoming our students, our staff, all the superintendents, and everyone else. It’s a great feeling,” she said.

Before the students arrived, Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz offered encouraging words to the group, thanking them for taking the time to cheer the students on.

“This is a special day. Thank you for welcoming our students. But the big thing is, we need you as role models and mentors in our community. You do a fabulous job,” she said.

Superintendent of Schools Leslie Torres-Rodriguez also thanked the group, noting her desire to continue to work with them on other issues that Hartford Public Schools are facing.

“I’m so glad that we could do this again. So we’re gonna try to do it again this year, in terms of making sure that each and every one of our students has the skills, the knowledge, but also the support that they need, especially from the community. It’s not just about today…this is just one day. We welcome the partnership all year long,” she said

Leader and Navy Lt. Junior Grade Ryan Biggs encouraged the men to continue to show up to support the children.

“You see the energy, you see the kids, you’ve seen the smiles. Tell your friends to bring one or two more friends out…I need you to promote it. And we need to amplify this and make it much bigger, much larger and really show these kids that we are here to support them. Keep on bringing that image to them, showing the support.”

After the Calling All Brothers group completes their welcome-back celebrations for the week, they will continue their mentorship programming throughout the school year, leaders said. Some of these activities include mentor sessions with eighth grade male students, the African/African American History Bee and the Trunk or Treat in Unity Plaza in Hartford’s North End.