Every Wednesday members of Student African American Brotherhood (SAAB) circle around Pan African Student Success Center room to discuss upcoming events and the importance of brotherhood.
On February 18th at 6 p.m.-9 p.m. in the SMSU theater, the student African American brotherhood organization will be a having jazz night event that is themed around the Harlem Renaissance.
The SAAB organization advocates brotherhood, academic achievement, and community service at the CSUSB campus, this organization embraces young men of color no matter their background and their biggest mission is to come together and form a forever bond in the name of unity and brotherhood.
“We want individuals to view SAAB as a tool to get as many resources as necessary to help them succeed not only educationally but, as well as in the real world,” said Marlo Brooks senior at CSUSB and president of SAAB.
The most important core values of SAAB are the structures that guide the organization, extracurricular activities, events, and meetings such as continuum of service and intervention from middle school to college graduation, early intervention, and prevention as well as self-discovery.
The organization tries to recruit transfer students and incoming freshmen’s, and anyone is welcome to be a part of SAAB.
One of the SAAB members Nicolas Jenkins a 7th-year student shared why he decided to join the SAAB organization.
SAAB member, Prince Ogidikpe emphasized the brotherhood aspect of the organization and expressed that they felt a sense of unity and a feeling of belonging:
“When I joined all the SAAB members seemed well rounded and I looked up to all of them as big brothers, also as mentors and so it inspired me to want to immolate their example, said Prince Ogidikpe a senior at CSUSB and member of SAAB.”
The SAAB is comprised of male individuals and their members that strive to provide positives examples.
They hold weekly meetings on Wednesday’s in the Santos Manuel Student Union at 6:00 p.m. and engage in culturally conscious activities to “help them become better future leaders.”
SAAB’s requirement and strategy to join the organization, individuals must go through a year-long process that typically starts in the summer of each year, with incoming freshmen students coming in after which they attend weekly meetings to get to know current and potential members.
There is no membership fee and any male of any cultural background may join. The club does pay an annual certification fee of $250 to the national board, but that comes out of the SAAB club account and not the member’s pockets.
“Members do not need to prove their worth, I think the biggest thing is that students get a sense of belonging going through their 4 years of being a part of CSUSB,” said Brandon C. Landrum, CSUSB Office of Admissions and Student Recruitment Admissions Counselor/Recruiter.
SAAB is known for volunteering in their community specifically, in the inland empire area. Moreover, SAAB president Marlo Brooks expressed how SAAB travels to inland empire High schools and middle schools and mentor young men about the importance of further their education.
“Our main community service is in the high schools and middle schools; our next biggest project will take place mid-February and we will be taking on a middle school and high school to get a SAAB chapter started up early in the Inland Empire because of the success rate it has on campus,” said Marlo Brooks senior at CSUSB and president of SAAB.
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