By Aria Brent
AFRO Staff Writer
abrent@afro.com
learned in the classroom and hands-on experiences needed to succeed in the workforce.
Through the programming offered, students can hone their skills in everything from
carpentry to masonry and more.
Credit: Courtesy Photo
Carver Vocational Technical High School has been training their students to excel in both career and collegiate settings for nearly a century. Now, a local organization is helping the historic school further prepare their students for greatness.
Requity, a non-profit organization rooted in promoting sustainable community development, is aimed at investing in people and projects focused on social, economic and environmental returns. Founded by Carver alum Sterling Hardy, the small organization is making a huge impact in the Pressman neighborhood.
“The problem was a lot of my classmates and I were not getting jobs in our actual trades that we graduated school for,” stated Hardy, explaining what inspired him to start Requity. “We’ve been in school for four years, we took these trades, we graduated, we’re certified in it–but no one wanted to hire us because they said we don’t have real hands-on skills.”
The need for hands-on work experience, along with a series of homes around Carver that were in need of renovation, gave way to the founding of Requity in 2020. The program has created pilot projects that are focused on feeding the community, renovating the neighborhood and completely remodeling a home directly across the street from Carver.
“There’s another project that we do called ‘Pleasant Pressman.’ We put up new lighting and new sign fixtures to revitalize the block,” stated Hardy. “We have a program right now that we do on Wednesdays, it’s called ‘We All Eat Wednesday.’ We go around and we make lunch for the neighborhood. We pass out free lunches to the neighbors around the community.”
Hardy explained how important it is to provide students with not only the knowledge to succeed but the skillset as well. He shared with the AFRO that not only are they giving students the hands-on experiences they need for their respective fields, but they’re also teaching them soft skills that can be transferred to a multitude of outlets in their lives.
“We’re changing the narrative of Baltimore City…We’re not just talking about it. We’re actually showing people it can get done and we can make it happen. It may take some time, but we’re on the right path and Baltimore City is going to be a great city.”
“Instead of giving them a textbook and sitting them in a classroom and telling them ‘take these notes and take this test’ it gives them a hands-on skill to utilize everywhere,” Hardy said.
Students from all trades at Carver are welcomed to join the program and further the skills they’ve learned in their programs. Other sectors of the organization, such as the media team, have allowed students like DeMarco Johnson to hone the skills they’ve been learning while attending the historic high school.
“We get footage and we prepare everything so it can be posted,” stated 17-year-old, DeMarco Johnson.”This has been able to help me branch out in the media field. Getting to meet different people and connect and build my portfolio has been great. I think we need more things like this to help Baltimore as a whole.”
Johnson is a senior at Carver, where he’s studied in the Interactive Media Program for the last four years. Since having joined Requity he’s been able to further hone his media skills by participating in the Carver Media Team.
The program currently has about 12 to 15 students who are not only gaining experience in their field but they’re also earning the opportunity to pursue their trades in professional environments like internships and jobs.Although the program is currently only operating inside of Carver they are looking to expand the program to other schools and even regions outside of Baltimore.
“Our goal for this is to not just have it at Carver. Our goal is to scale this out across the entire city of Baltimore, then eventually the state and other cities that need this support,” stated Hardy.
Requity is not only providing more professional opportunities to students, they’re also allowing them to express themselves and tap into a part of their creativity they didn’t know existed.
“Requity has helped me express myself more. Since working with the organization I’ve learned how to contribute ideas to projects,” said Carver senior Deshawn Brown.
Brown is also a member of the Carver media team. Much like Johnson, he has been able to grow in his program and use his skills to work with other organizations in the Baltimore community.
Hardy noted that in addition to helping students gain experience in their respective fields, it’s also helped them improve their academics. Some students in the Requity program have become honor roll students after previously struggling with their grades. Other students have gone on to work with companies such as Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) and the Harbor Bank of Maryland.
Requity is determined to change how Charm City is viewed– and they’re starting with the youth.
“We’re changing the narrative of Baltimore city, that’s what we’re doing. We’re not just talking about it,” exclaimed Hardy. “We’re actually showing people it can get done and we can make it happen. It may take some time, but we’re on the right path and Baltimore City is going to be a great city.”
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