Content Warning: Racism, Gun Violence, Death, Sensitive Language
In this episode, Dr. Dennis Floyd Jones shares his lived experiences ranging from tragedy to the overwhelming power of mentoring and education. Dr. Jones and his siblings were the first African-American students to attend integrated schools in West Virginia following the Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954. This time was fraught with trauma but his family persevered and since then all his siblings have earned graduate degrees. Dr. Jones himself went on to become a tenured faculty member at West Virginia University where he became a lifelong mentor to Sarah Wright, a former student and now TRIO staff member. Currently, Dr. Jones is the Executive Director of the non-profit he founded, Youth Enrichment Services. YES empowers youth through mentorship, education, advocacy, and exposure. Dr. Jones has learned throughout his life that young people believing in themselves leads to immense transformation for the individual but also for communities large and small.

To learn more about the history of Brown v. Board of Education in Greenbriar County West Virginia, please visit https://textbooks.lib.wvu.edu/wvhistory/files/html/15_wv_history_reader_stack/
https://www.theclio.com/tour/672/6
To learn more about Youth Enrichment Services, please visit www.youthenrichmentservices.org