The Recipe for Literacy in the Black Community©2007

The most recent published report from the National Center for Education Statistics conveys the high school drop-out rate for African Americans is 10.9 percent, far outpacing the percentage for whites, whose drop-out rate is 7.3 percent. Bay Area parent and youth activist Beverly Black Johnson has taken steps to address the dismal statistics.


She founded "Gumbo for the Soul" Scholarship Awareness Program to implement resolutions to black students' declining GPA’s, and to improve the scores of college-bound high school seniors by developing local after-school tutoring programs. Created to  implement tools to support and promote higher
learning strategies for black youth starting with awareness,
tutoring, and scholarship programs to contribute to their success. Additionally, we will launch the Gumbo for The Soul annual scholarship fund benefiting youth of all ages.

We've adapted the Literacy Support Ribbon(tm) to heighten awareness of the plight of illiteracy and our vision. Wearing it is a show of support and unity.  

For more info visit www.gumboforthesoul.com and www.barnesandnoble.com