Hip Hop 4 Life Youthfest 2008 Rap Session to Be Held at
Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, October 11

Brooklyn, N.Y. – More than 250 teenagers are expected at the “Hip Hop 4 Life Youthfest 2008 Rap Session.” They will be exploring way to design an individual image by navigating challenges ranging from safe sex and dating violence to finishing high school and going to college.

The all-day event, sponsored by the Brooklyn Campus School of Education and Hip Hop 4 Life, takes place on Saturday, October 11, in the Arnold & Marie Schwartz Gymnasium at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, located at DeKalb and Flatbush Avenues in downtown Brooklyn. Other sponsors are radio stations 98.7 Kiss FM and Hot 97.

The teenagers are from junior high schools, high schools and youth social service organizations throughout New York City and northern New Jersey. Brooklyn Campus education students, who are planning to teach in urban schools, will also attend. Expert panelists will coordinate the program and answer questions.

"The educational needs of our young people extend beyond the ABC’s," explained School of Education Dean Cecelia Traugh. "Students must confront life and death issues, and a School of Education and its educators would be remiss in not giving adolescents the information they need to made the best decisions for their lives."

The Brooklyn Campus School of Education prepares its students on the undergraduate and graduate levels to become intellectually stimulating and caring educators for the New York City school system.

"Engaging, educating and empowering youth to adopt a healthier lifestyle is the mission of Hip Hop 4 Life,” according to its founder/director Tamekia Flowers-Holland. “We are dedicated to building self-esteem, confidence and sound judgment in young people so that they can achieve their utmost potential and become a generation of leaders and proactive members within their communities."

Since its inception in 2003, Hip Hop 4 Life, has produced interactive workshops, discussion forums, performances, celebrity visits, health fairs and other youth-focused events in partnership with youth and community-based organizations nationwide, impacting over 10,000 youth.

For further information, contact Tamekia Flowers-Holland at 646-706-7370. To find out more about Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, call 718-488-1011 or e-mail admissions@brooklyn.liu.edu.

Posted: October 2, 2008

Media contact: (718) 488-1015