South Side churches' reading camp for Black boys getting national attention

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Two churches on the South Side are making Chicago proud.

Salem and Progressive Baptist churches started a pilot program to help improve the reading skills of young Black boys. It's called Black Boy Literacy.

The program was so successful last summer that the churches brought the reading camp back this year to prepare Black boys for the upcoming school year.

What started as a pilot program-- has become a model for other Black churches across the country.

The goal is to improve the literacy rates among young Black boys. It's a major investment that the churches say is paying off.

Sounding out words, completing sentences and reading for comprehension...the Black boy lit summer camp is in full swing!

"I was stuttering and saying um and ugh," eight-year-old Seven Butler said. "And then I got better and better at it."

It's the second year of program, where Black boys in grades 1 through 3 spend their summer reading with the help of certified professional educators.

Brothers Christopher and Christian Westbrook say before the program, reading was the last thing they wanted to do.

"It was kind of hard for me back then," Christopher said. "But now that I'm reading now, I'm actually liking it. It's easier for me now."

This six-week summer camp is the brainchild of Pastor Charlie Dates, who is the senior pastor of both Progressive and Salem Baptist churches.

His late mother, Jessie Mae, was a CPS teacher for 42 years and a literacy specialist. Pastor Dates is continuing his mother's legacy.

"It is beyond disheartening to hear that our kids in the 5th, 6th, 7th grade cannot read at the third grade level," Dr. Charlie Dates, Senior Pastor, Progressive & Salem Baptist Churches, said. "The Black church has been at the forefront of liberation for Black people hands down. Literacy is liberation. It is the tool that unlocks the freedom of life."

Pastor Dates said results are astonishing.

He says many of the boys have not only caught up with their peers-but in some cases-excelling beyond their expected reading level. The boys are proud to show off their report cards.

The Black Boy Lit program is being introduced in churches across the country!

"We have helped another church in Louisiana develop an iteration of this," Pastor Dates said. "And then there are churches all the way from D.C. to Little Rock to California that are also following our model.

"For those of us who believe in the power of Black intelligence, who believe in the striking ability of Black people to change America, ought to make every effort to ensure that our boys are able to read with comprehension by the third grade."

The two churches have raised tens of thousands of dollars for this program.

They hire educators at a full summer salary rate, the churches are covering the expenses for lunches, field trips, technology. This is a major investment in these boys.

If you'd like to support the movement-or enroll your child in an upcoming camp, visit www.blackboylit.com.