Gregory Render-Butler is a 19-year-old big brother with two jobs, but he still makes time to clock in at home as well.
He recognizes family is important partially because of life and leadership skills he acquired during his early teenage years while being a part of the Renaissance Team, which stands for Talented Educated African-American Men.
“In school I used to act all big and bad, but the program taught me to be humble, which lead me to be a better person to my peers and my teacher,” said Render-Butler.
Before he graduated from Howard High School and enrolled at Mercer University, he attended the mentoring program led by the fraternity brothers of Omega Psi Phi since he was in middle school.
Ron Taylor is the creator of the advisement program. He spent 30 years in the Bibb County School system and says the Renaissance Team helps educated teens about health awareness, food, nutrition and more while preparing them for college and life after college.
“It’s very important because our young people are being drifted off into the wrong direction, and so the members of the Omega Psi Phi Lambda Phi chapter felt the need to go reach out to the community and try to do those things to uplift these children and give them positive male role models,” said Taylor.
Gregory is now attending Mercer and earning two incomes along the way.
He says he’s on the right track and gives a lot of credit to the Renaissance Team; and Taylor is grateful.
“Our children are being exposed to all kinds of negative things and we want to expose them to positive things as it relates to black males that have a college education and college degrees and are doing anything and all things around the community to move us forward,” said Taylor.
“My father’s not here, so it really provides role models for me to look up to. I feel like if I wasn’t in that program, I would not be on the path I am today,” said Render-Butler.
The program celebrates its 10th anniversary this year,
More than 140 students have finished the program with more than 70 percent continuing their education at the college level.
This year, six members from the program graduated high school and all of them will attend college in the fall.