Stony Brook students to be honored at Northeastern for essays on courage
Northeastern will host a celebration on May 15 to honor sixth-grade students for their capacity to articulate their courageous responses to life’s challenges. The awards cap a yearlong language arts program based on the value of courage and dedicated to strengthening their character development and literacy skills.
Forty-six students participating in the Max Warburg Courage Curriculum, Inc., a globally acclaimed program in residence at Northeastern University, and a founding partner in the Stony Brook Initiative, will be honored. Their essays on courage will appear in the 18th edition of “The Courage of Boston’s Children.”
“This is a moment of pride for students who have worked so hard,” said Elizabeth Evans, the program's executive director. “When sharing deeply personal stories, it takes courage even to put pen to paper. These students set a tremendous example for their peers and the city and prove that young people have a great capacity to do courageous things and to elevate the community.”
Since its inception in 1991, more than 80,000 students have participated in the program, named in honor of Max Warburg, a boy from Boston who died of leukemia at age 11. The program gives sixth-graders the opportunity to build character skills by recognizing and celebrating acts of courage in their own lives and the lives of others. Roxbury's James P. Timilty Middle School and the Rafael Hernandez Middle School participate in the program.
"The Courage Curriculum has advanced reading, writing, and critical thinking standards for students and provided an outlet for students to share stories that are both therapeutic and empowering," Evans said. "By putting their community stories into writing, students shed light on important issues such as violence, homelessness, and drug addiction."
