Citation #3: TEDxFoggyBottom ā€œDisrupting the School to Prison Pipeline | Benjamin Williams |ā€ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxUKU8Rtakw&t=570s&ab_channel=TEDxTalks 

Summary: The principal of Ron Brown College Prep, Benjamin Williams, shares his experiences growing up in a struggling area and having family who werenā€™t always there for them and the impact it had on his education. He emphasizes the importance of having a strong “why” which as he explains is your belief as to how you can help the world. Dr. Williams discusses the creation of the school and its focus on empowering young men of color, addressing the school-to-prison pipeline, and promoting an environment where students can thrive knowing they have the resources to help them. He highlights the struggles and successes of the school and the importance of giving students a voice and the skills to be productive citizens. Dr. Williams urges people to take bold and courageous action to bring about change in systems and inequalities in education. He ends with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. and encourages everyone to cause a big reaction in the world. 

Reflection: The ted talk brilliantly emphasizes the role of principals and shows how creating a space where students arenā€™t met with a straight outcome of suspension but rather have multiple resources to rely on and help them to succeed and right their wrongs. In the video Dr. Benjamin Williams talks about an experience with a student named Jay. Jay is a 17 year old 9th grader and struggles with meeting his academic goals and credits but rather than being pushed out he is instead motivated and empowered to work hard and achieve his graduation requirements. This shows how important it is to give these students attention and understand where they come from.  

Quotation: In the video Dr. Williams says, “We wanted to give them the skills to be productive citizens however they choose, not a statistic.” I like this quote and choose it in particular because schools often time see their students as just statistics, a number that shows how good they are at