LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Lima's My Brother's Keeper invited experts to speak on what parents and community members can do to keep youth on the right path.
Families came out to the free forum Raising Black Boys to get a better understanding of the problems plaguing today's kids, and how adults can address them. The organizers, who work with Lima's young people, have noticed more concerning trends of risky behavior, and wanted to get ahead of the issue before it becomes more serious.
Guest speakers recommend that parents get their child's perspective on topics like social media or reading more outside of school.
"Some of the most important or interesting reading can be done just with video game manuals. That language is at a 12th or higher grade reading level, and if the kids can read it and understand it, and that's something that they love to do. Reading should never be done as a discipline or a punishment," said Matt Stevens, the director of mentoring for the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.
"Parents have to do a better job of monitoring what their children are viewing, particularly when you think about social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram and others. I think oftentimes young people have free reign over social media and there doesn't seem to be a lot of checks and balances in terms of how much time that they're spending," added Dr. David C. Miller, the author of Dare to be King: What if the Prince Leaves?
Professionals emphasize that the advice shared can and should be applied to all teens, even those that seem to be doing well.
"Whether you're a 4.0 student to the least motivated, whether you're very active in the community doing positive things or you don't know where you fit in at, it's important that you have the skill set to deal with some of the risky thinking and risky behaviors, because we're all human," said Emmanuel Curtis, the lead of the Lima Chapter of My Brother's Keeper.
Thursday evening's forum was the first session of a three part series.
