Building the Bridge: How MBSK 517 Is Connecting Lansing’s Youth to Real Opportunities | A Chronicle News Community Spotlight Feature Untitled
- Yanice Y. Carter
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
LANSING, Mich. — There’s a difference between telling young people to dream, and actually giving them somewhere to go. The My Brother’s & Sister’s Keepers Alliance of Metro Lansing, known as MBSK 517, is choosing the second.
Through the launch of the Lansing Opportunity Hub, the organization is creating a structured, intentional pathway for youth to connect directly with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and organizations ready to invest in their growth. This is not just another program. It is a coordinated effort to close the gap between potential and access. But this work is not happening in isolation.
MBSK Metro Lansing and MBK Michigan are both recognized as My Brother’s Keeper Certified Communities, part of a growing national network committed to improving outcomes for boys and young men of color.
Across Michigan, that network includes Benton Harbor, Detroit, Flint, Kalamazoo, Lansing, and Washtenaw County, forming a collective effort rooted in shared accountability and measurable impact. Supporting this work at the state level is One Love Global, which serves as backbone support for MBK Michigan and helps align strategy, partnerships, and implementation.
The foundation for this movement traces back to 2014, when President Barack Obama issued a call to action, urging the nation to recognize that the success of boys and young men of color is tied directly to the future of the country itself. That call became the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, now a program of the Obama Foundation, grounded in research, data, and proven strategies designed to move young people toward long-term success.
At the center of that strategy are six key milestones, each representing critical points along a young person’s developmental journey. For both Metro Lansing and MBK Michigan, the focus is clear:
Milestone 5, ensuring that youth are connected to meaningful employment opportunities.
And that’s exactly where the Lansing Opportunity Hub steps in.
At its core, the Opportunity Hub is designed to do one thing well: put young people in rooms where opportunity lives.
And those rooms are opening.
Through partnerships with local businesses, nonprofits, and community leaders, youth will have access to:
Internships
Apprenticeships
Mentorship opportunities
Workshops and training programs
Business pitch events and showcases
Career shadowing experiences
This summer, the initiative begins with a focused pilot in partnership with Sexton High School, with expansion plans already underway for the fall.
But what makes this effort stand out is not just the programming. It is the structure behind it.
MBK Certified Communities operate with a clear mandate, not just to serve, but to demonstrate measurable, population-level impact. Through a nationally guided framework known as the Pathway to Population Level Change, communities are required to track progress, refine strategies, and ensure that their work leads to real, sustainable outcomes, not just good intentions.
This is about building systems that work. And in Lansing, those systems are being strengthened through collaboration.
Organizations across the city are stepping forward, not just as supporters, but as active participants in workforce development. Among them is The Chronicle News.
As a longstanding voice in the community and a platform rooted in storytelling, The Chronicle is not only working alongside these organizations to provide media coverage for the initiative, but also opening its doors to the next generation.
Through this partnership, The Chronicle will offer:
Internship opportunities in journalism, media, and communications
Apprenticeship-style learning experiences for youth interested in publishing and storytelling
Hands-on exposure to real newsroom operations, content creation, and community reporting
Because exposure matters. Because access changes everything. And because sometimes, all it takes is one opportunity to shift the entire trajectory of a young person’s life.
This partnership reflects a deeper understanding, that building a stronger community requires more than conversation. It requires investment, visibility, and action.
MBSK 517 is calling on additional businesses, organizations, and leaders to step into that responsibility. Those interested in participating in the summer pilot program must register by April 15, with ongoing opportunities available for fall placements through the Youth Opportunity Hub.
The question is no longer whether our youth are capable. The question is whether we are willing to meet them halfway. In Lansing, that answer is becoming clearer by the day. Opportunity doesn’t just change lives, it builds legacies. And this time, Lansing is building on purpose.
The door is open. Now the only question left is, who’s ready to walk through it, and who’s ready to hold it open?
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