Derek Porter selected to participate in Institute for Responsible Citizenship
The Institute for Responsible Citizenship has announced the names of 16 college students who will participate in an intensive leadership program in Washington, D.C., this summer. These gentlemen represent some of the best and brightest African American male college sophomores in the country.
Derek Porter
They are aspiring public servants, businessmen, lawyers, doctors, nonprofit leaders, journalists and educators. More than 300 applications were submitted by a talented pool of applicants that included merit scholars, campus leaders, athletes, entrepreneurs, musicians and founders of nonprofit organizations. This year’s cohort of students is the most diverse class to date. These young men hail from nearly every region of the country and attend Ivy League institutions, large public universities and small liberal arts colleges.
St. Thomas student Derek Porter is one of the 16 selected to participate. Since arriving at St. Thomas in 2006, Derek has become actively engaged on campus with academics, co-curricular programs, student organizations and community groups. Derek’s academic major is secondary education with a concentration in social studies. His campus involvement includes: MSS Linkages Mentor Program, Tutor Mentor Program, resident adviser, Gospel Choir, UST pep band, summer orientation leader, fall leadership institute, founder/president PULSE, THIRST, and Teacher Education Advisory Council.
Derek Porter is also involved with giving back to the community. He consistently volunteers with community organizations such as Feed My Starving Children, Ebenezer Ridges Retirement Home, Teens Encounter Christ, and Powderhorn Community Center. All of these experiences have contributed to his personal and professional development.
On June 6, Derek will be welcomed in Washington, D.C., by 19 returning students, alumni and the Institute’s staff. While in the program, he will live with other African American male college students on American University’s campus, intern at public and private institutions around Washington, take courses on constitutional and economic principles, and meet privately with some of Washington’s most influential leaders.
As a member of the institute’s Class of 2009-10, Derek will join a network of very talented young men. Institute alumni have attended or are attending some of the top law schools in the country, including Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Cal-Berkeley and Georgetown and graduate programs at Yale, Chicago, NYU, North Carolina and several other leading universities. Two have written books; two are participating in Teach for America before beginning their professional studies, (Harvard Law and Brown Medicine). One is an ordained minister and one is a captain in the U.S. Army. Another was recently named a Rhodes Scholar. All of them are serving their communities in some way.
Please join me in congratulating Derek Porter and wish him well as he prepares for this exciting leadership opportunity!
