SANFORD - Students and mentors working to strengthen success among men of color attending Central Carolina Community College gathered on May 6 to honor their spring graduates and celebrate the group's accomplishments.

Brothers of Excellence is a program connecting strong, supportive men to help students navigate their academic journeys. The outreach also provides resources and tools to help students achieve their academic and personal goals.

Several groups were recognized during the one-hour celebration at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic & Conference Center: students receiving a variety of scholarships and awards, six students scheduled to graduate this month and about a dozen mentors who work with students during the year.

Jairo Lara Diaz, one of the spring graduates, was recognized early in the celebration for receiving a full scholarship from the Goodnight Scholars Program to attend N.C. State University. The engineering student said Brothers of Excellence made a real difference during his time on campus.

"I wasn't alone," he told the group. "I had someone to support me to keep on going. And without that, I wouldn't be here today graduating with a full academic scholarship to go to State, one of my dream schools."

After all of the presentations, guest speaker Jasmin Spain closed the celebration by teleconference from Greenville, where he is founder and chief visionary officer of The M.A.I.N Initiative, an organization working to empower and strengthen African American men.

Recounting some of the acutely difficult challenges he faced in his own life, Spain described how those helped him define his passion and purpose. He then encouraged all of the students to consider their own lives, take responsibility for their futures and make sure they help others who may later travel a similar path.

"The value of your success will not be measured by how much money you earned or the title you will receive," he said, "But it will be measured by what you did with your success to provide others opportunities to be successful as well."

Candice Solis, CCCC's Director of Onboarding and Success and coordinator for Brothers of Excellence, noted two other graduating students who have achieved success while participating in the program. One was accepted at Methodist University, where he also has signed to play basketball, and the other is a first-generation college student who will be attending N.C. A&T State University.

She said she was pleased with what the group accomplished this year and is even more encouraged that the program will continue. With the grant extended for the next four years, Brothers of Excellence Mentoring Program is already accepting applications for the next class beginning this fall.

Learn more about the CCCC Brothers of Excellence program at . Or, contact Candice Solis at 919-718-7565 or by email at csoli934@cccc.edu.

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Brothers of Excellence Graduates: Brent Alexander, Josh Bell, Deshawn Bethea, Jairo Diaz, Eric Johnson, and Hector Ramirez.

Brothers of Excellence Mentor Award Recipients: De-Ven Atkinson, Gary Blankenship, Brian Bridgers, Carl Bryan, Jalen Cheek, Anthony Farrior, Oscar Hernandez, Kelvin Hunt, Zack Ledwell, Arthur McCullers, Jairo McMican, and Kevin Pearson.

Brothers of Excellence Award Recipients: Brent Alexander, Ronnie Bautista-Rodriguez, Josh Ray Bell, Deshawn Bethea, Kenneth Caraway, Derek Chester, Leo Hernandez Cristobal, Jairo Diaz, John Fang, Alex Herrera, Eric Johnson, Roberto Morales, Hector Ramirez, Rickie Rembert, and Joshua Roque Rivera.