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https://madamenoire.com/1069361/lebron-james-i-promise-academy-high-test-scores/
Source: Jason Miller / Getty
A year after its opening, the students at LeBron James’ I Promise Academy have made a complete turnaround academically.
Last year, the students scored extremely low on their state exams, putting them in the lowest percentile. Fast forward to now and the third grade students’ test scores have jumped to the ninth percentile while the fourth graders are now in the 16th. Ninety percent of the students that met their academic goals exceeded 70 percent of students nationwide. The test scores for the I Promise Academy improved at a higher rate than 99 out of 100 schools nationally.
“These kids are doing an unbelievable job, better than we all expected,” James told The New York Times. “When we first started, people knew I was opening a school for kids. Now people are going to really understand the lack of education they had before they came to our school. People are going to finally understand what goes on behind our doors.”
The excitement comes from their test scores from the Measures of Academic Progress assessment.
When James started this school he was praised for giving back to his community and focusing on education however no one knew what to expect and some doubted the school would be deemed good. The students who fill the third and fourth grade classrooms were already labeled as some of the worst students in Akron. Thankfully, the school and students defied the odds and have exceeded expectations so far.
Source: Jason Miller / Getty
A year after its opening, the students at LeBron James’ I Promise Academy have made a complete turnaround academically.
Last year, the students scored extremely low on their state exams, putting them in the lowest percentile. Fast forward to now and the third grade students’ test scores have jumped to the ninth percentile while the fourth graders are now in the 16th. Ninety percent of the students that met their academic goals exceeded 70 percent of students nationwide. The test scores for the I Promise Academy improved at a higher rate than 99 out of 100 schools nationally.
“These kids are doing an unbelievable job, better than we all expected,” James told The New York Times. “When we first started, people knew I was opening a school for kids. Now people are going to really understand the lack of education they had before they came to our school. People are going to finally understand what goes on behind our doors.”
The excitement comes from their test scores from the Measures of Academic Progress assessment.
When James started this school he was praised for giving back to his community and focusing on education however no one knew what to expect and some doubted the school would be deemed good. The students who fill the third and fourth grade classrooms were already labeled as some of the worst students in Akron. Thankfully, the school and students defied the odds and have exceeded expectations so far.
I once saw a caption on an Instagram post of an avocado latte that said: Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely. And I mean, it’s true. Power changes people. Just look at some of the most beloved villains in pop culture. Darth Vader grew up a slave and was told no at every turn of his life until he embraced the power within and took over the galaxy. Magneto’s powers manifested just as his family was ripped away from him, leaving him in a position to exact revenge on those who took his love and comfort away.
Obviously, there are fictional heroes and people in the real world that hold positions of power that aren’t as rotten as a half-eaten apple in the compost bin. But power only amplifies and exploits what’s already right under the surface. If you’re a decent person and you suddenly gain a lot of power, your less desirable attributes become amplified. But if you’re a fragile person with a shoddy support system who just needs an outlet, power corrupts absolutely.
Black Nerd Problems can exclusively reveal from Dark Horse Comics: The Quiet Kind. A tale of power, revenge, and empathy as a young boy named Solomon is suddenly imbued with the powers of ancient gods. After a visit by a band of similarly-gifted children, Solomon must decide whether to use his powers for good or risk unraveling existence itself just to seek vengeance on his bullies.
Writer Chuck Brown (Bitter Root, The Punisher, Black Panther) and artist Jeremy Treece (Angel: Season Six, Fantastic Four) explore what it means for young, marginalized children to suddenly find themselves in possession of a great, cosmic power in this giant 64-page one-shot.
It’s looks like The Quiet Kind is taking that idea that the X-Men are a metaphor for marginalized (particularly black) people in America, and looking at it in a more literal sense. Marginalized people, be it race, gender, or disability, are already stripped of some of their basic human rights upon birth. And the thought of gifting characters like that power that allows them to leapfrog their “peers” makes me really excited. And that’s before I start to think about the commentary this is gonna have on our society. Giving anyone the powers of ancient gods is already taking a risk. But when an abundance of power is given to someone who previously had none, things might get a little slippery.
The Quiet Kind goes on sale July 17, 2019, and is available for pre-order at your local comic shop and at Things From Another World. This one-shot features an 8-page prequel story illustrated by Kelly Williams (Creepy Comics, A Letter To Jo) and features a cover by Michael Cho!
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The post Exclusive: THE QUIET KIND Coming in July from Dark Horse appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
The Episode IX trailer for the latest Star Wars movie was just released. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will be the space series’ most diverse casting since the first movie premiered in 1977. People of color including leading man John Boyega, Kelly Marie Tran, Naomi Ackie, and the return of Billy Dee Williams in the iconic role of Lando Calrissian, are front and center in the latest episode.
And while there was controversy over the casting of John Boyega, a black British actor as a Stormtrooper in the Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie, there have been iconic black actors and characters throughout the Star Wars universe. Here are seven of the best known.
Black Characters Star Wars Characters
Mace Windu
Played by: Samuel L. Jackson
Film: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, 1999
(Image: Facebook)
2. Lando Calrissian
Played by: Billy Dee Williams
Films: The Empire Strikes Back; Return of the Jedi
(Image: Facebook)
3. Maz Kanata
Played by: Lupita Nyong’o
Film: The Force Awakens
(Image: Facebook)
4. Voice of Darth Vader
Played by: James Earl Jones
Films: Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back; Return of the Jedi
(Image: iStock/tihomir_todorov)
5. Jabba the Hutt’s Twi’lek slave dancer Oola
Played by: Femi Taylor
Film: Return of the Jedi
(Image: Facebook)
6. Finn
Played by: John Boyega
Film: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi
(Image: Wikimedia)
7. Rachel
Played by: Crystal Clarke
Film: The Force Awakens
(Image: Instagram)
Check out the trailer to Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker:
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Editors’ Note: This article has been updated from its original publish date in 2017.
The post ‘Rise of Skywalker’ Set to Be Most Diverse Star Wars Casting Ever. Here Is A Roster of Black Star Wars Characters appeared first on Black Enterprise.