Buffalo City Court Judge Craig Hannah helped Erie Community College’s Men of Merit Program kick off this year’s Speaker Series Thursday. The program was established to foster excellence, distinction and integrity in the school’s male African-American, Hispanic and Native American students.
Hannah spoke to about a dozen students about the importance of education and self-improvement. He explained how pursuing higher education changed his life.
“You get inspired by your classmates. Let’s say he starts to get into medical school, right? And let’s say he becomes an engineer. Then you’re sitting up there like ‘Man, I gotta start doing something. All my boys getting put on somewhere.’ That’s why I really enjoyed college. I had no clue what I wanted to do, but you surround yourself around good people, and you see them all starting to progress, and then you get a chance to realize what’s good for you," Hannah said.
The Men of Merit Program’s stated goal is to help “chart a course to graduation often hindered by poverty, crime and unemployment within the local and national minority communities.”
Hannah told the room not to let others get in the way of their success.
“You gotta be selfish with this," Hannah said. "Everyone says you’re not supposed to be selfish, but the one thing you must be selfish with is your time. And if people wanna waste your time—and I’m talking about Playstation, reefer, drank—if they’re trying to get things in you that’s gonna steal your time, your talent, and your ability, you don’t need them around you, cause you only have a finite amount of time.”
Buffalo attorney John Elmore also spoke about the importance of pursuing higher education, even if it means being the first in the family to do so.
“My first cousin that went to Fredonia, he was like the oldest of 19 grandchildren. Once he went to college, for the rest of us it wasn’t ‘if’ we were going to go to college—‘where’ are you going to college. That whole mentality changed. We all ended up not only getting college degrees, but most of us have graduate degrees or professional degrees because somebody broke through and broke those chains of poverty,” Elmore explained.
Members of the Men of Merit Program have access to support networks comprised of guided services, including academic readiness workshops, crisis counseling and career development. It also provides mentorships to help students meet academic and life goals.
