On April 16, high school and college students of color met at Blackhawk Technical College’s Beloit-Janesville Campus for the Dream Chasers Summit. Held in partnership with Blackhawk’s Minority Excellence Organization, the event offered an opportunity for attendees to be inspired and motivated and to explore the importance of education, networking, setting goals and chasing their dreams.

The event featured leadership workshops and keynote speaker Kwabena Antoine Nixon, a Milwaukee author, speaker, spoken word artist and educator.

“The biggest hater is the streets. The biggest vampire is the streets. It sucks out your dreams,” Nixon said as he opened.

Then, he encouraged everyone to get up and greet one another. They were instructed to call each other king and queen–a show of respect for each other. Throughout the room, people could be heard saying, “Hi, king–I’m glad you’re here” and “Hi, queen–I’m happy you’re here today” and “Hi, queens and kings!”

After several minutes of greetings, Nixon called everyone back to their seats and got into his presentation on achieving dreams.

“I don’t want to talk about your hoodie. I don’t want to talk about your look. I want to talk about your heart and your mind. That’s where your dreams come from,” he said. “You know your dreams are real when people say, ‘You can’t do that.’”

Nixon was born and raised on Chicago’s west side. At the age of 11, he lost his father to street violence. From his early teens, well into his days as a young adult, he struggled to find his voice and his purpose. He moved to Milwaukee to escape an unhealthy lifestyle. Nixon uses life experiences as a springboard to motivate youth. For more information on Nixon, visit kwabenanixon.org/. 

Blackhawk’s Minority Excellence Organization is a student-led group designed to engage and support students of color through academic success, personal development and community engagement. All students are welcome.