William Simms:
���� The organization�s mission is that we�re dedicated to improving the quality of life in our communities and enhancing educational and economic opportunities for all African Americans.� Historically, we�ve been focusing on young African American males, but the mission embraces males and females.� You�ll find that many chapters are involved with both (sexes).

William Simms:
���� Well, first of all, you need to understand what constitutes the �100�.� It is an organization made up of African American males who have reached some significant level of success in their lives.� They�re either doctors, lawyers, educators, politicians, or they�re in Corporate America in executive-level positions, and they have made the decision independently to give back to their communities and give back to young African Americans.� And so, the significance of the organization is that we bring 8,000 men who have achieved levels of success, (and) who have a desire to share their pathway to success with young people�to show them how to do it, and how to avoid some of the pitfalls that they may have fallen into.� It�s their way of enhancing (and) creating opportunities for young people, but basically giving them a resource so they can find a way to be successful on their own.

William Simms:
���� Well, we�re convinced that when you have a chance to interface with someone who has walked a difficult path and has achieved some level of success, you can learn from them.� So, the most important contribution we can make is our experience.� We�ve gone that difficult path, we�ve fought to clear the obstacles, and we know how to be successful � we�ve got that under our belts.� We also have a real serious heartfelt passion about giving back�that�s what makes us unique.� And so, the way we enhance the community, the way we give back is through our hearts and our experience.� We know what it takes to be successful, and we know what it takes to have a good life.� We believe it�s imperative that we share that experience with young people.

William Simms:
���� I joined the �100� about 12 years ago as a Founding Member of the chapter in Charlotte, North Carolina.� The reason I got involved then, although I had known about the �100� several years prior to that, was the simple fact (that) there were very few African American men who were actively involved in the community, helping people to overcome their various levels of difficulty.� And while there were several African American men who were successful in various levels of business, there was no �coming together� of these men.� We had an Assistant Chief of Police (in Charlotte), a Senior Vice President at a local bank in charge of Corporate Affairs, a Vice President at another bank who was in charge of Mortgage Lending� we also had a couple of doctors, a couple of very good lawyers (who were) partners in their own law firms, or in (predominantly) white law firms.� But there had not been this coming together, this sharing of both the experiences and the difficulties, even of being in those sorts of levels by one�s self.� When you�re that successful, you�re generally the only African American in that business or in that office.�

So these men had (similar) experiences, but hadn�t had the chance to share that with each other or to share that with young people.� We were meeting in sort of an unofficial way at a local club, and talking about what we were going through in that relatively small town of Bankridgetown.� Out of those social gatherings grew our desire to share with the youth what we were experiencing because we were good role models - at least in our minds we were (smiling) - and that we had a lot to share.� So, we thought we�d come together.� One of the men happened to have moved to Charlotte from Atlanta, (Georgia) and (also) happened to have been a member of the 100 there.� He said, �well, the way for us to do this is to officially create a chapter of the 100 here�, which meant that we had to really get ourselves organized � not just talk about it.

It did give us a structure�sort of a game plan to follow; we gathered up the necessary numbers -which is just 25 guys - got our dues together, found a local cause while getting a local school to be our partner, and then applied for our chapter in Atlanta.� The folks in Atlanta approved, and we spent the first two years really struggling to keep the �free spirit� that we had to share and give back while, at the same time, making sure that we were under the structure of the organization of the 100.�� That went very well � we became �Chapter of the Year� in our third year, and in that fourth year, we were able to bring two busloads of people from Charlotte to our National Conference.� It grew very fast, and it�s still a very good chapter.� So, that�s how I got started.� Then, when I relocated to Atlanta, naturally I wanted to continue my involvement with the 100.� I transferred my membership to the Atlanta Chapter, got on the Board, and joined the committees for Special Events and Economic Development.� I�m still involved in that chapter now as well as (being) President of the National Office.�

William Simms:
���� Well, the way I see my job here is to facilitate the programs of the various chapters.� We�ve got 91 chapters, including four in other cities around the world � one in South Africa, two in England, and one in the Caribbean.� It�s their responsibility to put on programs that improve and enhance the opportunities for young African Americans in those cities.� It�s our job in the National Office to make sure that we have corporate partnerships that provide us with the funding that make those programs possible.� It�s also our responsibility to make sure that if there�s an effective program going on in one chapter, and the idea of a program of the same nature is birthed in another city, that we bring the elements of that program to the second city�so that we don�t run the inefficiencies of �recreating the wheel�.� We simply take a good program (from) someplace else, bring it to a new city and expand our effectiveness across the country.� It�s our job to coordinate those activities, to bring sponsorships to the table, and to make sure that our programs are implemented in the high quality fashion that was envisioned of the original Founders.

William Simms:
���� Well, we�ve got a really good Scholarship program.� We gave away (approximately) 60 scholarships this year, totaling about $200,000 for those recipients.� These were all excellent scholars � in fact, the competition was very steep.� We�re proud that we were able to give that many scholarships.

����������� We also have a very active Urban Technology program.� We�re building technology centers in Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago�we�re attempting to building one here in Atlanta.� We will be granting money to chapters in other cities so that they can build technology centers or provide computers to underserved families.� The purpose here is to bridge this technology gap�to make sure that the individuals in our community are computer literate and can, therefore, meet the minimum requirements that we face today in our job market.� Our economy is very tight.� If you don�t have that basic requirement, you�re not going to get a job�so these centers are going to help (with that).

����������� We also have a program called Young Men Behaving Responsibly.� This one focuses on sex and sexuality, and the responsibilities that young men have in making good decisions in their life in those terms.� And, it�s a chance for us to do some further mentoring of young men as they reach those critical decisions in life and run the risk of either having babies out of wedlock or contracting diseases that could impair their quality of life.� So, that�s just a couple of the programs we�re involved in�

William Simms:
���� ING Aetna is a major sponsor.� They�re the ones involved in our Externship Program, which provides training and exposure to young adults in (the area of) financial services.�
AT&T and Brown & Williamson are involved in our Urban Technology Program.�
UPS is involved in our Job Readiness Program,
and of course, Delta Air Lines is involved in our Volunteer Program as well as our Travel Program.�

William Simms:
���� This might sound strange, but I�d like to see us not be needed in the future.� I�d like us to be so successful at reaching African American men and women; at showing them the pathways to success and that it is possible to achieve incredible success in their lives that we begin to create an attitude among African Americans in general that it can be done.� Therefore, there won�t be a need for men who succeeded to �reach back� because there�s no reaching back�people will already be looking forward and coming forward, and they�ll be successful.� There would be no need for us.� So, that would be my desire�to wake up and find that the African American community does not need to have a program dedicated to enhancing its opportunities�that young people dream big and achieve big, and that there are no problems as far as their opportunities for success.�

Now obviously, that�s a long way away.� In the meantime, I�d like to see the number of men in the organization double, then quadruple, because that means that there are that many more successful people.� I�d like to see us all touching as many young people as we can�because the more we touch, the fewer will be in jail or involved with drugs or having kids out of wedlock, etc.� So, my dream would be that we continue to grow in membership and chapters, and (to) reach many more male and female youth and begin to change this time.� If we can get them in the right hands, I venture to guarantee you that when we touch a child�when a member of the 100 touches a child�we don�t run the risk of that child going to jail or dropping out of school � they will be successful.� So, the more we can touch, the better we�re going to be.

William Simms:
���� The first message from me to anybody in school is to stay in school!� Get your degree! Education is something that cannot be taken away.� The only person, in my mind, who can damage what you put in your brain, is you.� You ruin with drugs, you can ruin it with alcohol, or by making bad decisions, but education is your absolute strength.� One thing I was told by a mentor of mine a long time ago was that getting a quality education doesn�t guarantee you a thing � but it does get you in the game.� If you get in the game, you have an opportunity to be successful.� Without it, you can�t get in the game.� So, get the education first�that�s critically important.�

The other thing is (to) remember that you are where you are because there are people who died and withstood tremendous pain, anguish, despair, and misery to allow you the opportunity to be there.� There�s no question that we would not be sitting in this office - nor would we be having this conversation - if Dr. King didn�t endure being put in jail, being spat upon, having dogs put upon him or having fire hoses shot at him�when he did that, he did that for us.�� So, we have an obligation to continue to give at the same level, in the same spirit to our communities the way he gave to his community because that�s the legacy that we�ve inherited.� Another thing to keep in mind is that you should remember that you are a product of incredibly powerful, strong, and surviving stock.� The people who came across on slave ships�many of them died, but we happen to be the descendants of those who lived.� This means that there�s blood running in my veins from somebody who�s incredibly strong to have survived that passage and lived through the pain and misery of slavery.� So, I am somebody significant, and I am somebody important.� I�m very proud of that heritage, and I should share that with people who come around me.� We should not look down upon ourselves at all.�

So, again, students at HBCUs: get your education, remember to give back, but remember who you are � you come from very strong, very sturdy stock.� You can do anything you want to do; you can achieve any amount of success at all.� You will never have a challenge as difficult as your ancestors, and they survived!� You are here � therefore, you come with that strength.� You can accomplish anything!

WS:���� Good, no problem � I enjoyed it!� Thank you!�

Quick Facts: