2008 Local Legends
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast committee is pleased to recognize outstanding
community leaders who represent Dr. King’s dream: a testament that a dream is a
growing reality.
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Darcel Hill
Darcel Hill, an academic advisor for the College of Arts and Science at Metropolitan
State University, has committed her life to proving that education truly has the
power to change lives Through three decades of work, Darcel has touched thousands
of students of color. She’s developed after-school programs. She’s created college-access
programs for teens and young adults. And she’s established motivational workshops
and parenting empowerment classes.
But that’s only some of it. Throughout her adult life, Darcel has worked with social
service and educational programs to address and minimize the disparities faced by
children of color. It’s a problem she knows first-hand, having been a teen mother
who experienced discrimination as a first-generation college student.
Today, Darcel uses her own personal experience and lifelong lessons to help others.
As a part-time program director for the St. Paul Area Council of Churches’ Project
Spirit and Freedom School, Darcel is an advocate. She brings best practices to the
programs – which serve African-American children aged 6 to 12 -- and is a respected
speaker, educator and preacher.
Recently, for example, she traveled to Tennessee to learn about the State Children’s
Health Insurance Program, which was established to ensure health care access to
the nation’s uninsured children. Using ideas from the Children’s Defense Fund, she
shared the health care message with those back in the Twin Cities. Children and
their parents got involved, writing letters and making signs, urging elected officials
to pay attention to the uninsured.
An award winner who also has developed book groups and led Bible study classes,
Darcel’s strengths include a tireless dedication to equality and an unwavering determination
to bring people together. For her outstanding leadership within her community, the
General Mills Foundation and UNCF are pleased to recognize
Darcel Hill as a 2008 Local Legend.
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