Grade 8 Student Participates in HackBAC at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School

In early January, John T. ’23 participated in HackBAC, the Black Alumni Collective (BAC), hosted by St. Andrew’s Episcopal School. HackBAC, founded by St. Andrew’s alums, including St. Patrick’s own Kiah Simms ’08, cultivates genius in young leaders of color who innovate for positive social impact. 

The theme for this year’s event was Innovating to Promote Health Equity in BIPOC Communities by Addressing Social Determinants of Health. “Participants will focus on how students from historically marginalized races, cultures, and identities experience their environment in relation to health care and access.” Some areas of focus for participant tracks were economic stability, health literacy, healthcare access & quality, cultural competency/humility & communication, and creating healthy communities & neighborhoods. Grade 8 student John T .’23 participated in the Healthcare Access & Quality track, hoping to focus on food insecurities and mental health during the program. He questioned: how might we help unhoused people of color in Washington, D.C. by providing quality mental health care and access to a reliable meal?

When John returned to St. Patrick’s, he presented this pitch to his peers. If you’re interested in helping John and other Middle School students and bringing this project to life, please contact barrj@stpatsdc.org.