In the spring of 1990, a young group of African American men at the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy, started a club where students would meet in the cafeteria and discuss topics such as black culture, accomplishments, race issues, and other issues that were going on in the world and school. The collective group came up with the name Black Awareness Society for Education, or B.A.S.E. The club has now become one of the preeminent clubs at U of D Jesuit and has led hundreds of students at the school to be diligent young men.
The overall purpose of the club is to help promote the students at U of D Jesuit on historical accomplishments and current accomplishments of Black people worldwide. By doing this, it helps students learn important information about people doing the right thing in the world in the hope for them to follow.
The club has five substantial moderators willing to lead and help teach the importance of Black culture. The moderators are Ms. Toles, Mr. Flowers, Mr. Donato, Ms. Shore, and Mr. Ramsey. In B.A.S.E., they also have an e-board. The e-board’s job is to run the meetings, plan the activities, and run discussions on topics. The E-Board for the 2024 school year is Steven Hicks ’25, Jordan Lee ’25, Kameron Davenport ’25, and Myles Williams ’25. B.A.S.E. meets in chapel every other Tuesday of the week and advises anybody in the school to join the meetings whether or not they are black.
Ms. Toles, who is one of the moderators of B.A.S.E., gave her input on what the club means to her. She mentioned, “Base is the Black Awareness Society of Education, and it is a safe place for students of color to interact and discuss topics and the building and just be together as one. Ms. Toles also explained what some of the things are you do in B.A.S.E. “Some of the things we do in B.A.S.E. and we have our meetings weekly, we plan outings and activities, such as going on HBCU trips, visit colleges, haunted houses, and historical movies, and we try to gather with our alumni once a year.”
One outstanding accomplishment the U of D Jesuit B.A.S.E. made last year was collaborating with the Mercy High School B.A.S.E. This was long-awaited for U of D Jesuit and Mercy, and they finally made it happen. Some of the activities they did last year were a movie night, game night, and cookout. Collaborating with Mercy makes it easier for students to get to know one another and expand on other Black culture topics.
A yearly tradition that the U of D Jesuit B.A.S.E. does as well is a convention that welcomes anybody in the community to come to U of D Jesuit to celebrate many African American traditions in the world and celebrate Black success. This tradition takes place around the end of March or early April, and it is always a great time for all students, teachers, and parents. Ms. Toles explained this about the convention: “So the B.A.S.E. convention happens every year at the end of February or early March. U of D Jesuit invites other B.A.S.E. groups or black union groups to discuss topics for the black community, and we break bread with one another and just have a good time. The B.A.S.E. convention is one of the most popular events U of D. Jesuit has to offer and provides a dominant learning experience to all that attend.”
To kick off the 2024-2025 school year, B.A.S.E. attended the UDJ Trunk or Treat event on October 30th at the Johnson Recreation Center, where students decorated the trunks of their cars and handed out candy. The event was a huge success and received great feedback from everybody who attended. The U of D Jesuit B.A.S.E.club also plans on having more exciting events, such as movie nights, events with Mercy High School, and more. The E-Board this year is planning to have the best year they have had for B.A.S.E. in a long time and have been on top of their game as far as planning and getting students to join the club. Ms. Toles mentioned, “I do feel like the E-Board is really on it and is invested in what the club is going to do; we just had a trunk or street that was very successful, and I feel like it’s going to be a really good school year for the B.A.S.E.” Emmanuel Massie, who is also a part of B.A.S.E., also described how it’s looking this year: “I feel like BASE is looking good right now, and a lot of new people have joined the club, so it makes it more fun for everybody because we can discuss a lot of important things during BASE, and a lot more of the activities are going to be fun to go too.”
Emmanuel Massie is a senior at U of D Jesuit, and with it being his fourth year as a member, he has described it as something valuable and very important to our school. Massie stated, “I feel like B.A.S.E. shows appreciation to the Black community, and it gives other opportunities for all Black students to do something great in life and school.” In B.A.S.E., you can gain important information about the Black community and also understand what it means to be Black in the world. Emmanuel explained some of the things he has learned from B.A.S.E. as well: “I feel like being involved and having brotherhood in our school and such; it is an all-boys school, and it is important for all of us to get together and talk about stuff in B.A.S.E.” B.A.S.E. is also a great place to meet new people and spread certain topics on your mind. The E-Board also reminds all students that it is a safe place to talk, and no one will judge you. Massie sees B.A.S.E. as somewhere you can meet great people and gain good relationships: “I definitely enjoyed it a lot and grew a lot of relationships with being in the school, and most of my friends from school are in B.A.S.E., so it’s always been fun.”
B.A.S.E. offers an opportunity for students at U of D Jesuit, in grades 7th-12th, to learn the importance of black culture and celebrate Black excellence throughout our school and the world. Not only that, B.A.S.E. follows you along to your future as an adult, and you can use the lessons you learn in the club throughout your life. The U of D Jesuit seniors will soon be on their way to college, and being a part of B.A.S.E. will offer guidance throughout their time. Emmanuel Massie, who will be graduating this year, offers his thoughts on how it will help him in the future: “I do think it will help because being in B.A.S.E. teaches you a lot of things you need to know in the future and helps a lot of Black students do good in the world. B.A.S.E. is a very valuable club to U of D. Jesuits and offers anyone of any kind to come every other Tuesday to the chapel after school.
