The District Chronicles

Issue date: 11/15/09 Section: Cover

Media Credit: Robert Eunbanks/Staff Photographer

By Ronald Tolson Jr.

Contributing Writer



Richard Melvern is standing in front of 20 boys, arms folded, portraying a less-than-impressed facial expression. He walks in a clockwise circle around the group, eyes scanning and ears perked up listening for perfection.

Dem' Raider Boyz Step Squad, the highest ranked male step squad in Maryland, is practicing their ferocious stepping dance routines in the cafeteria at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md.

Like an orchestra leader who has total control, Melvern raises his hand. Instantly, the boys stop moving. The room stands still and would be completely silent except for the heavy but controlled breathing of the boys. The boys' eyes and ears are on him as he declares: "It was just OK. I need more."

Melvern stands at just 5' 8", but that belies his work as one of the principle reasons young African-American men's lives are changing at Eleanor Roosevelt.

He himself is a graduate of Roosevelt and Dem' Raider Boyz. But when his former coach retired, he stepped in as a volunteer coach to keep the squad running. The group started in 2001 to serve as both an after school athletic extracurricular activity and personal achievement program.

"I felt I couldn't just let the team dissolve," he said. "It just so happened that I would be attending the University of Maryland College Park which is right down the street from Roosevelt. I felt it was divine intervention working on my behalf."

He graduated from the University of Maryland in 2003 with a degree in economics and took a job as a financial analyst at Mooring Financial Services in Vienna, VA. But he continued coaching Dem Raider Boyz, ranked as the number one, all-male step squad in the Metropolitan area for the last eight years.

"I understand what it means to be a young, African-American male in today's society and all of the stereotypes associated with being a Black man," Melvern said.

Twice a week, he leaves work early and commutes an hour to Roosevelt. He makes up lost hours on other days of the week. But, before performances, practice is held Monday through Thursday for three hours, while Friday sessions are six hours.

"Mr. Melvern is more than just my coach," said 14-year-old Joshua Thomas. "He is also my teacher, mentor, confidant, role model and even like an annoying older brother."

Continued...

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