Just this past week, Sonoma State presented its inaugural informational Zoom meetings for the MECSO, which is the Male Educators of Color Student Organization. The school held various Zoom meetings to provide a space for not only the SSU student body, but the community as well, to contribute ideas, gain perspective, and get an understanding of current issues and events regarding male educators of color.

SSU’s MECSO has been in the works since Sept. 2020 and finally became an organization in Feb. 2021, with the support and leadership of students and faculty. It consists of 5 -10 hours of lectures, discussions, guest speakers, students, and other faculty. This is a soon-to-be-yearly event that will cover a range of topics to provide students a sense of belonging, the significance of education, as well as our educators, and the underlying issues revolving around our country’s education system.

MECSO aims to support and serve males of color who aspire to work as education professionals throughout Sonoma County and the Bay Area. The organization’s main goal is to enrich the experience for male students of color who are committed to social and educational justice, and hope to positively impact their communities. Students in the organization will receive support from the SSU Male Educators of Color (MEC), where students will be able to share their perspective on education, as well as learn from the experiences of former and current teachers and administrators. The purpose of this collaboration is to bring a sense of belonging and inclusion to undergraduate men of color, while fostering their academic success and professional development.

The event held here at SSU was founded and run by Joe Lofton, a student leader who is serving his second term as Senator for the School of Education.“The reason I wanted to start an organization like this is to give undergraduate male students of color a platform of education due to the lack of resources when attending a predominantly white university,” Lofton explained. “Our students should be able to see themselves and their educators as equal regardless of what color their skin is.”

Lofton went into detail about what he looks forward to after graduating. Not only did he have his bags packed, but he had all the paperwork ready to be submitted for graduation. All it took was one person to believe in Lofton and show him that he had a reason to be where he was meant to be, and for him, that one person was Professor Susan Haas. Haas believed in Lofton during a time where he didnt believe in himself. “People need to know this… from my personal experience, I question my sense of value everyday walking into those classrooms, and I would do anything to suppress that feeling for anybody going forward. I would ditch class and do things I’m not supposed to do in order to not have that feeling. I was sick and tired of it,” Lofton claimed.

Without the help of SSU’s faculty and campus resources, this organization would have never gotten off the ground. MESCO’s mission is to try and provide a system of support and a platform for students of color to give them that sense of belonging. “I am just trying to leave Sonoma State a little better than when I found it,” Lofton said. “There is no losing, only learning. There are no failures, only opportunities. There are no problems, only solutions.” This is the mindset that Lofton guides his work through daily.

Lofton takes part in the Early Childhood Studies Program with a concentration in education. This summer, he is enrolling at Alder Graduate School of Education with aspirations to be a kindergarten teacher. Lofton hopes to be able to teach at Aspire Richmond Technology School, which is a continuation school through the University of Pacific, Stockton. Alder is known for preparing different educators of color, where Lofton will get his Master’s and his multiple subject teaching credential to continue his path on educating the community about people of color and their sense of belongingness.

For more information or any questions regarding MECSO, you can follow the Instagram page, @ssu_mecso or email Lofton at [email protected].