Today we’d like to introduce you to Frank Brown.
Frank, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born in Charleston, South Carolina. I attended public school for most of my childhood until I got an amazing scholarship to attend the prestigious private school, Bishop England High School. When I arrived, I had an opportunity to see what the American Dream is made of. I saw two-parent households that valued education, and that most parents were college educated who sacrificed to make sure their kids had the best. When I went back home I realized that I had none of that and it motivated me to put myself in position, so my kids could have more than me. After private school, I went to Johnson C. Smith University and graduated with honors.
After undergrad, I went on to the University of South Carolina School of Law. I had the pleasure of being offered an internship at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation in Washington D.C. So, I packed up my beat-up Honda Civic and went to D.C. for the summer. The experience changed the trajectory of my life. I saw how power if used for good, could do great things. I also saw how power, when used for unscrupulous reasons, could do harm.
After graduating law school and passing the bar, I obtained an internship with Republican Congressman Mark Sanford, who was famous as Governor of South Carolina. This internship put me in position for a $20,000 a year position with Arlen Specter, Senator for Pennsylvania. I thought I was living the dream! Working for Senator Specter changed my life. He was a father figure, he groomed me. He took an interest in me and I left as one of his most trusted aides. After working for Senator Spector for five years, I had another influential pivot in my life.
I was offered a position in the White House but ultimately turned it down to go to Harlem to work with an organization called Boys and Girls Harbor. God sent me to my mission and my passion: saving poor black kids. In Harlem, I learned so much about the nonprofit world and the issues that people of color face.
After I left the Boys and Girls Harbor, I went on to lead an organization called Oasis Community Corporation which provided after-school programs in New York for wealthy and disadvantaged kids. That was my first experience running an organization. It was a critical experience because it was tough. The recession hit our nonprofit and there was just no money. We got to a point where we couldn’t make payroll, I remember I cried. I couldn’t believe we had gotten to that point.
I learned a lot about adversity during that experience. Adversity taught me how to better manage a nonprofit’s finances and the overall health of an organization. It prepared me for where I am today. I am now the Chief Executive Officer of Communities In Schools of Atlanta and I’m on a mission to transform the organization to be the number one affiliate in the country. In my office, I have Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King Jr. and W.E.B Du Bois as my guidepost as far as the impact I want to have on our students.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the most consequential thing that happened to me was when my brother killed my stepdad in front of my mom. That incident was devastating but taught me that no matter how bad things are, God is still there. It taught me the importance of family and it gave me the resiliency to understand that nothing is impossible to get through. It also gave me the fortitude to understand that I need to use my platform to prevent another child from making a silly mistake that harms his family and harms himself.
I look at these things as blessings. Sometimes when you’re going through something it’s just about you, but what you’re going through is building you. It’s making you strong, tough and preparing you for the next phase of life. In life, you have to have just as many scars as smiles.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Communities In Schools of Atlanta – what should we know?
I am the Chief Executive Officer of Communities In Schools of Atlanta. Our mission is simple: to knock down students’ non-academic barriers so they can succeed and graduate high school. We place loving adults or site coordinators into schools to build one-on-one relationships with students. Our site coordinators are then able to help students with resources such as clean clothes, emotional support and financial and academic assistance.
By the year 2021, we want over 95% of our caseload students to graduate or be promoted to the next grade. Then after that, we want to support our kids in college. Currently, we are going above and beyond our mission by supporting over 20 of our alumni who are in college. We have created an environment where people authentically care for each other.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Authenticity is important. CIS of Atlanta is authentically built around people. CIS of Atlanta is an organization that embeds itself in some of the poorest neighborhoods in this country. We’re not just in business as an after-school program, but we are with our kids 12 months a year. We have a year-round ecosystem that produces meaningful work and meaningful relationships.
Meaningful relationships produce great moments. I think my proudest moment is when I can see a kid graduate high school and move on to bigger and better things. I feel proud when I get a Father’s Day note from a former student. I feel proud when I get thank you letters from students thanking me for getting them internships and helping their families. I can’t go on with my life until I get all the students we serve to where they need to be.
My goal is to make sure all the kids I touch become great American citizens. I have no doubt that we are creating future leaders and philanthropists.
Contact Info:
- Address: 260 Peachtree St., NW Suite 750 Atlanta, GA 30303
- Website: www.cisatlanta.org
- Phone: 404-897-2390
- Email: info@cisatlanta.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cisatlanta/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CISAtlanta/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/cisatlanta
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/CISAtlanta
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