Success Stories: "Anthony"

Four years ago "Anthony" was working at a legal services firm with little chance of advancement. This was not the way things were supposed to work out for the promising student who had spent two years at a prestigious private university in New York in the early 1990s. Almost a decade had passed since that time, and Anthony still had not completed his college education.

Despite the stagnation in his career, Anthony took an active interest in his community. A lifelong resident of Cleveland’s Central neighborhood, Anthony began attending ward meetings to express his concerns about drug activity and vacant lots in his neighborhood. Anthony’s intelligence and involvement caught the eye of the executive director of the local community development corporation, who recommended Anthony to a new community-based program that was just being started by The Cleveland Foundation.

As a result of that referral, Anthony became one of the inaugural members of the Grantmaking and Monitoring Committee for Neighborhood Connections, a Cleveland Foundation initiative that provides small grants for neighborhood improvement projects in Cleveland. At the first training session for the committee, Anthony met Don Slocum, who at that time was in the final stages of launching the Neighborhood Leadership Institute. Don encouraged Anthony to submit an application for the upcoming class of Neighborhood Leadership Cleveland. Anthony applied and was admitted.

Anthony enjoyed his participation in Neighborhood Leadership Cleveland. He learned new techniques for community organizing and met a diverse group of grassroots leaders from neighborhoods throughout Greater Cleveland. "It was really interesting to hear about what was going on in other neighborhoods," Anthony recalls.

The composition of the class was important to Anthony, but so was the location. Setting foot on the campus of Cleveland State University each week inspired Anthony to resume his studies. He enrolled at Cleveland State with a concentration in Urban Services Administration. While completing his undergraduate degree at Cleveland State, Anthony made the Dean’s List every semester and graduated summa cum laude. He also enjoyed the unique distinction of being the first graduate of Cleveland State’s new Honors Program.

After being admitted to several prestigious law schools around the country, Anthony chose to stay in Cleveland at the Cleveland Marshall College of Law, where he is pursuing not only a J.D. but also a Master’s in Public Administration. The college dropout who was going nowhere just four years ago now has plans to work in corporate law and then in government, possibly as an elected official.

When people talk about the "Brain Drain" in Northeast Ohio, they tend not to think about gifted young people living in Cleveland neighborhoods like Central. Unfortunately, the young talent in these neighborhoods remains largely untapped. Anthony’s story reminds us of the great things that can happen when we provide support and opportunities for our homegrown talent.