Student Participates in UN Workshop on HBCU-Africa Collaboration
Millbrook is known for teaching responsibility by letting young people lead while they’re still in school. Elias Castro ’27 has taken the lessons he’s learned on campus to heart, looking for opportunities to lead now, rather than waiting until after completing his studies. Most recently, he visited the African Union Mission to the UN to participate in a workshop on setting up HBCU satellite campuses in Africa.
Along with three other high school students from HBCU Early College Prep, Elias presented about the cultural challenges of setting up HBCUs in Africa. He spoke about his experience as a student at Millbrook School, providing valuable insight to the leaders of the workshop. Those leaders included ambassadors, politicians, HBCU presidents, and various experts. “I learned a lot about the UN process and the importance of African American education,” Elias noted.
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He also shared that the workshop was a great networking opportunity. The attendees enjoyed good food and live music together, and he was able to meet with the former dean of the McCourt School of Policy, Judith Feder, who offered insight for a policy paper that Elias and his friend are working on. While this was an event he attended through his off-campus connections with the Youth Publications & Socioeconomic Forum, Elias appreciates the way Millbrook prepared him to capitalize on the opportunity.
“I think Millbrook has helped me a lot in giving me the opportunity to find my voice and speak in these spaces. I mean there are ambassadors there. There are leaders of universities. And I think being at Millbrook has helped me realize that my voice matters as much as the next person's, and the next person's voice matters as much as mine. I gained that confidence through having a lot of intellectual conversations with my teachers.”
Elias is quickly becoming a familiar face at the United Nations. He also presented at the UN Economic and Social Council Youth Forum at the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development over the summer. We’re eager to see what’s next for him, as he finishes his time at Millbrook and heads off to his next adventure!
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