Colin Powell: A big name to live up to

The former U.S. secretary of state graced the opening of the Colin Powell Youth Leadership Center in Minneapolis.

By Terry Collins, Star Tribune

Last update: October 4, 2007 - 9:40 PM

As 15-year-old Isidoro Tirado began speaking at the podium Thursday and saw Colin Powell sitting to his left, it hit him.

"Wow, this place is my school," the ninth-grader said. "I'm lucky."

The former secretary of state and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman and his wife, Alma, joined hundreds Thursday during the grand opening of the Colin Powell Youth Leadership Center in south Minneapolis.

The goal of the $30 million three-story state-of-the- art center is to help young people excel in learning. It's expected that 25,000 students will use it each year.

It was built in tandem with Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, which is designed to educate low-income students with diverse backgrounds.

On Thursday the school's nearly 100 students served as ambassadors, giving guests tours.

"It's awesome," said Rosalynda Boykin, 14, a ninth-grader. "They're preparing me for college and the rest of my life."

Powell said he was "very impressed" when he last visited the center when it was still under construction about a year ago.

He was wowed after seeing the finished product. "It's a remarkable facility," Powell said.

He recalled meeting Art Erickson, the CEO of the faith-based organization Urban Ventures, who proposed a center bearing Powell's name.

"He said there was a doughnut hole in south Minneapolis, where jobs left, businesses left and families left," Powell said. "And Art tells me that he wants to fill it by creating an environment where youngsters are taken care of, educated and start to draw economic activity back into the center of this community. That's exactly what this will help do."

The Powell Center's completion illustrates how far Urban Ventures has come. It's faced a number of setbacks on various programs, so when the ambitious Powell project was announced, some were skeptical.

But John Turnipseed, director of Urban Ventures' Center for Families, said Erickson was undeterred.

"A lot of people were telling Art, 'Don't do it,' but he had a vision," he said. "Now we have created something really special."

Powell said that in an ever-changing world, no goal is more important than preparing youth for the future.

"We can do better," he said. "We must do better."

Staff writer Steve Brandt contributed to this report. Terry Collins • 612-673-1790

Terry Collins • tcollins@startribune.com

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