DETROIT – The gymnasium of Frederick Douglas Academy for Young Men was filled with excitement on Wednesday, May 22, as dozens of students practiced tying neckties. Watching closely, and giving a few pointers, was a group of law enforcement officers serving as mentors.
“It’s really four steps to tying a tie,” Lieutenant Mark Young of the Detroit Police Department told one student, as he helped demonstrate how to tie a half-Windsor knot.
The officers visited campus to help motivate the teens through a program called ‘Tied to Success’.
“Tied to Success is where we give a young male a new or gently used tie,” Lt. Young explained.
The Tied to Success program has been operating in schools across Detroit for nearly 17 years. Officers from the Detroit Police Department and Detroit Public Schools, some of them members of the same fraternity, have been stepping up to help inspire, motivate, and mentor the students.
“I’m not trying to get young people to necessarily be law enforcement,” Lt. Young explained. “That’s not the goal. The goal is for them to be somebody. To realize they have potential and can be somebody.”
The Tied to Success mission is to touch the students’ lives positively. The group shared dialogue and deep discussions about preparing for job interviews, careers, and other critical moments.
“You guys are in your teens. If you tell me something, I’m mature enough to be like, I can learn from you guys,” one officer told the students.
It’s the type of connection with law enforcement some of the students said they never imagined having. Some of the young men compared the experience to building bonds of brotherhood and trust.
“It definitely feels better, like people from Detroit, because they know what we go through here in Detroit,” student Dominic Hunt said. “They know what to talk about. They know what we experience growing up as Black teenagers, or Black kids in Detroit. It helps build that bridge.”
The mentors and mentees are proving building bridges, in a unique way, can help make a difference.
Lt. Young said, “We want them to know that not only do they matter, but they are important, and they are vital, and they have options for the future potential.”
The Ties to Success program is looking for volunteers. The group said it could also use donations of new and gently used neckties. For more information contact Lt. Mark Young at 313-961-5699 or YOUNGM604@DETROITMI.GOV.
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