This dissertation explores the impact of the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project, an academic intervention and mentoring program for African-American males, on 30 African-American high school graduates. The 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project has a fifteen year history. What makes the project unique is that it is – unlike many such programs – fully funded by local school board and state funds. Several factors made this study relevant: (1) the high level of financial commitment by the school district, (2) its longevity, (3) the fact that thousands of students have matriculated through it, and (4) the fact that it has never been formally studied, made this study relevant.

By examining the academic and career choices of 30 African-American males graduates who participated in the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project during high school, the researcher indentified elements of the program that may have led to the participants' choices to set and achieve high goals. The researcher, using a qualitative case study methodology, collected data via surveys and interviews. The surveys and interviews yielded responses that gave insight into elements of the program (i.e., counseling, mentoring, academic support, trips, celebrity speaker, etc.) which increased the student's desire to go into postsecondary education. The analysis of these responses, which were charted, compared and narratively sampled, formed the raw data of the study. The results show that mentoring alone is not a sufficient tool for redirecting the academic outcomes of African-American males; rather, academic intervention, mentoring and counseling, together, can be used to help African-American males succeed both in and beyond high school.