SON OF A SAINT

Son of a Saint exists to transform the lives of fatherless boys through mentorship, emotional support, development of life skills, exposure to constructive experiences and formation of positive, lasting peer-to-peer relationships.

Son of a Saint provides fatherless boys with the support, opportunities, and services needed to place them on a trajectory to a self-sufficient, stable, and fulfilling life. What makes our program effective and unique is:

(1) the range and depth of our services: if we only focused on educating participants, for example, we could miss the participant’s challenges with mental health, or his family’s lack of stable housing, or his potentially inadequate nutrition.
(2) our narrow focus on fatherless boys: Son of a Saint’s boys share a history of loss. Our program fosters an environment where mentees form deep, supportive peer relationships.
(3) the length of time boys are with us (age 10-18).

We built our program with the belief that to truly change a young man’s life, we must go deep and stick with him. Generational poverty, inadequate educational systems, and neighborhood violence are nearly impossible to overcome without consistent, long-term, multi-dimensional support.

Each boy remains a Son of a Saint mentee until he is 18, but we continue to advise and support each mentee in the years that follow. The following is Son of a Saint’s system of strategies to meet the needs, interests, and ambitions of the boys who enter our program and graduate with expanded opportunities, access, and an enduring understanding of their value and potential:

Mentorship: Each boy is paired with a dedicated volunteer mentor, who provides companionship, encouragement, support, and guidance.
Mental Health Services: Son a Saint employs a licensed Mental Health Specialist that provides evaluations and ongoing group and individual counseling for our boys using a variety of evidence-based modalities including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).
Educational and Enrichment Activities: Mentees are exposed to weekly activities and meaningful engagements that are supported by mentors who attend and encourage participants in their extracurricular pursuits.
Post-secondary Planning: Son of a Saint offers comprehensive post-secondary planning support. Our Education + Career Coordinator works with each mentee to help him identify interests and goals, form college and career plans, select relevant co-curricular activities, and connect him to relevant internship or job shadowing experiences. Mentees are provided high-quality ACT prep, college selection and application support, financial aid + scholarship opportunity identification, and college visits.
Academic Support: Son of a Saint pairs boys in need of educational support with qualified tutors. These volunteers are all current New Orleans middle school or high school educators who are familiar with both the content and skills needed for academic success. Additionally, our Mental Health Specialists, Case Managers, and Education + Career Coordinator advocate for mentees within school.
Scholarships: Son of a Saint works to provide middle school and high school scholarships that allow mentees to attend tuition based schools.

Son of a Saint is governed by a Board of Directors composed of fifteen accomplished executives and leaders spanning diverse industries, fields, and areas of expertise. Their professional and civic background include fundraising, health care delivery, law, finance and accounting, social work, nonprofit leadership, and marketing.

Our partners include higher education organizations, nonprofits, and public institutions that enable us to meet the full spectrum of our mentees’ needs. Son of a Saint has grown to employ a staff of 20 professionals including licensed social workers in case management and mental health specialists.

In the spring of 2020, Son of a Saint graduated its third class of mentees who have proceeded on professional and educational trajectories. The universities at which they have matriculated include West Point Military Academy, Northwestern University, and Louisiana State University. Overall, 80% of Son of a Saint graduates attend college, and 20% are working professionals in roles with opportunity for advancement. Jaheim, who is attending Northwestern University this fall, began his journey toward this achievement as a full scholarship student at St. Augustine High School, an opportunity made possible by Son of a Saint. Current high school student, Zander, participated in Harvard’s Pre-College Summer Program, an opportunity also funded by Son of a Saint. These results are no accident. They are the outcome of interventions that meet the needs, ambitions, and interests of each mentee.

In 2021, Son of a Saint will embark on a growth plan to double the number of mentees in our program by the end of the year (200 mentees in total). With nearly half of New Orleans’ children living in single-mother families and a waiting list for Son of a Saint of over 200 boys annually, our organization must expand to meet the need that exists within our community. Son of a Saint is pacing its growth by enrolling the 100 new mentees in smaller cohorts on a rolling basis throughout the year. Through this pacing, we will grow our program intentionally, maintain stability, and continue to show strong results for all mentees without reduction in individualized support.