I just finished reading the book Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America by Paul Tough, which tells the story of the Promise Academy in Harlem. Harlem Children's Zone's leader Geoffrey Canada opened the school in 2024 and the book follows the school's first 5 years. The book goes into great detail about the Academy's successes and struggles, as well as how it fits into the structure of HCZ as a whole.

I thought it was interesting to read about Canada's goals to provide greater opportunities to Harlem's youth to be able to attend college. The book talks a lot about the disadvantages faced by low-income youth and the difficulties they face in school due to growing up in poverty. I've learned a lot from GetHealthyHarlem.org about how poorer people--especially in Harlem--have a greater chance of getting diseases and illnesses, but I never really thought about the inequalities that low-income children face throughout their education.

In the book, Canada talks about 2 strategies that HCZ is doing to help kids in Harlem increase their odds of going to college and succeeding in life. One is to introduce new or expecting parents to an HCZ program called "Baby College" very early on (before the babies are born) so they can read to and teach their kids all sorts of new things. He wants the kids to stay with HCZ's programs through prekindergarten, kindergarten, elementary school, and high school so they can continue to grow and learn with a stable education. The second strategy is afterschool and weekend programs for the kids that don't go to Promise Academy (it has a lottery system so not everyone is guaranteed a spot). By also focusing on these kids, they have a chance toward some achievement or college program and can be steered away from crime. His ultimate hope is to change Harlem's culture and introduce a set of values where, in a few years, several men and women will graduate and return to Harlem to encourage younger Harlemites to also succeed.

All in all, I thought the book was really good. I learned a lot about Harlem's culture and about such an influential man in the community. It was sometimes really academic-sounding. For example, there was a whole chapter about education theories I wasn't interest to me, but it set the stage for Canada's work. Most of the book told the stories of different staff members and participants of the Promise Academy and other HCZ programs. Those were definitely my favorite parts.

If you want to learn more about Geoffrey Canada and Harlem Children's Zone's involvement throughout Harlem, definitely check out the book!