100 middle school boys attend leadership summit at AT&T Park

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- About 100 San Francisco middle school boys are being inspired on Tuesday by some of the Bay Area's best and brightest, discussing science, technology, engineering and math.

These men came from all around the Bay Area, hoping to inspire students from an underserved school and give them the support they need to be successful.

"It feels great because they took off their time to come talk to us about our education," sixth-grader Jermaine Williams said.

The Silicon Valley Leadership Group is hosting the Young Men's Leadership Summit at AT&T Park. About 70 men from around the Bay Area volunteered to serve as mentors to 100 boys from Willie Brown Middle School.

AT&T California President Ken McNeely welcomed the sixth-graders to the stadium.

"When I grew up, I never saw anybody that looked like me in positions of authority and responsibility. So knowing that there's someone out there that I could aspire to be is a wonderful thing. I'm hoping to find the next president of AT&T California right here in this building today," McNeely said.

When asked what it means to see black men in leadership positions, sixth-grader Temon Howard said, "It makes me feel proud."

Former Mayor Willie Brown shared some advice and then the kids and mentors will break into teams to work on STEM skills, like building an airplane out of a kit. "We want to prepare the kids for the future so they know what to look for," mentor Manoj Midha said.

Organizers hosted a similar summit of young middle school girls this past spring and they say they look forward to opening up the summit to even more students next year.