SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — Former NBA superstar and Olympic gold medalist Allan Houston has brought his leadership mentoring program, Faith, Integrity, Sacrifice, Leadership and Legacy, to Seton Hall University.
Part of the Allan Houston Legacy Foundation, FISLL enjoys an exclusive partnership with the NBA. The FISLL Project focuses on “youth voice and leadership cultivation, combining the model of leadership teaching and restorative behavioral science with mentorship, character development, media content, events and programming.”
The South Orange Community Care & Justice initiative has joined together with the FISLL Project, South Orange Village, the city of Newark and its Office of Violence Prevention and Trauma Recovery, the H.U.B.B. nonprofit organization, and Seton Hall University to bring this leadership mentoring program to police officers and youth from both Newark and South Orange.
Through FISSL, Houston utilizes his sports philosophy combined with his dedication to servant leadership to empower participants to create social impact by coming together. The program’s ultimate goal is to empower cities, entities and organizations to create compassionate collaborative communities and cultivate servant leaders.
“This is an opportunity for us all to sit down as human beings and find a way — lead a way — to common ground,” said professor Juan Rios, co-director of Community Care & Justice and director of the graduate social work program at Seton Hall. “Cops and kids, profs and credible messengers from the community — we all have a part to play in the solution. And Allan Houston’s program — emphasizing faith, integrity, sacrifice, leadership and legacy — lays the groundwork.”
“The FISLL program is a perfect complement to the holistic approach to community wellness we have taken in Newark,” said licensed clinical social worker LaKeesha Eure, director of the Office of Violence Prevention and Trauma Recovery. “Systemic problems require systemic solutions. And in integrating all aspects of the community — police and citizens, academics and community practitioners, government officials, businesses and private organizations, the young and old — we are better able to come to real answers that work for real people in the real world. I believe FISLL has the power to be the next piece in that puzzle for the city of Newark.”