Meet Our Partner: Corey Bivens, Decatur Housing Authority’s Family & Youth Advisor
Anyone who works with DHA will tell you, Corey Bivens is the heart of that organization. He oversees all of the youth and family programs at DHS – more than 100 different programs in a given year! He knows every family in DHA who has kids, and knows everyone by name. To them, he’s Mr. Corey. He’s been in the position for more than 6 years, but has worked in that role for over 25 years, and has watched many of these students grow up, go to college and start their lives.
“My favorite part of my job is seeing the kids grow,“ Mr. Corey said. “I was just smiling because I got a call from Isis, (DHS graduate of 2020 and a DEF scholarship recipient), a girl I watched grow from a little girl and graduate two years ago. She just called to tell me that she was doing OK at college in Alabama.”
Mr. Corey works regularly with Marie McCollum, DEF’s Director of Programs and Partnerships who manages DEF’s AIM Scholars Program – a mentoring program that pairs third grade students who live in DHA with adult mentors. The long-term program helps these kids, many of whom are first generation Americans, and exposes them to new activities. Together, Corey and Marie collaborate to identify areas for growth and connect the students to resources. For example, when Corey noticed some of his students had low test scores, He and Marie created a way for Club Z tutoring to be offered at the after-school program with the help of funding from DEF.
There are an average of 65-90 kids per day in the center, and often there are four different groups in the center at a time – Boy Scouts, Girls on the Run, and Georgia Teen Institute for example. DHA partners not just with DEF but other local organizations –Decatur Makers, Decatur Active Living, and Lead by Example Basketball.
We spoke with Mr. Corey last week to get his thoughts on his work and partnership with DEF. Here’s what he had to say:
How has it been working with DEF?
“We’ve had a great working relationship with DEF. I remember meeting with Gail during my second week on the job and that’s when she told me her idea about having a mentoring program. And now, six years later, we’ve got more than 30 DHA kids enrolled in AIM. “
What do you like about the mentoring program?
“I like the fact that the mentors stay with the kids for the long-term, and I see the mentors grow right along with the mentees. The mentoring program is great for many reasons, but a big one is that it exposes these kids to people in different professions. For example, when Munawar is a senior and needs a college rec letter, he can ask his mentor Donald, who is a lawyer, to write one. And he’ll be able to write a really meaningful letter because he’s known Munawar since he was in 3rd grade! But it’s more than that. It’s important for these kids to have professional types in their lives –to see what’s possible.”
What’s something you look forward to every year?
Every summer we take 50 kids from DHA on a three-day camping trip. It is so important that these kids have good memories. Sometimes the camping trip is their first time swimming in a lake, or their first trip away from their families. And they’re with all of their neighbor friends. It’s a lot of work for us, but it’s so rewarding to see the joy these kids experience. That’s what it’s all about.”