MKE Fellows program helping young African American men succeed and maybe even return to Milwaukee

Persistent double-digit unemployment rates among Wisconsin African-Americans prompted leaders of the Fellowship Open, an annual fundraising golf tournament, to create MKE Fellows, a program designed to combat that statistic by training young African-American college students to become the next generation of Milwaukee's leaders. The 2015 Fellowship Open also honors the careers of Major League Baseball Commissioner Emeritus Bud Selig, former PGA America Executive Earnie Ellison, and civic leader Jackie Herd-Barber.

Business Executive and Workshop Speaker  Jeremy Bennett, Treasury Analyst, PNC Financial Services Group was a special live guest Friday on the CBS 58 News at 4 p.m. Along with  MKE Fellow  Nicholas Stokes who is a Rising Senior at Morehouse College and Morehouse Scholar, Finance Major, currently interning with the Milwaukee Bucks.

MKE Fellows is an extension of the Fellowship Open's support of the Morehouse Scholars Program, established in 2011. Funding for MKE Fellows started with a $1 million investment from the Milwaukee community. The tournament provides career development activities for these and future local African-American college students. MKE Fellows is holding a variety of professional development workshops and business learning sessions this summer.

For the past 15 years, the Fellowship Open has encouraged community organizations to foster academic achievement in urban Milwaukee's youngsters. The event prides itself on numerous collaborative efforts with prominent local business leaders.

The leaders who will serve as mentors to these students at an upcoming professional development workshop on Saturday, June 20, from 8:30 a.m.–12:45 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Milwaukee, located at 1558 N. 6th Street in Milwaukee include: