After experiencing troubles at school as a teen, and later volunteering in youth justice, Marco Renai founded Men of Business (MOB) Academy. The senior secondary school works to empower at-risk men with skills to build a successful future.
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00:00 Mob Academy was born from the stories of young men that were lost, that didn't
00:08 belong and a community that just cared. You know, we cared more to than just
00:16 looking at the problem, we actually wanted to try and solve the problem and
00:20 some great men came together to mentor, to train, to share experiences, to offer
00:26 opportunities and over time that program grew into an eight-week program which
00:32 then grew into a school. That school currently has 200 boys in education from
00:39 grade 11 and 12. Mob helps boys that have been disengaged in the system. Our
00:45 referrals come from schools, government agencies, single mums and boys who
00:52 basically have been out of the education system for quite a while and
00:58 enrolled themselves. We watch the transition of love, get these boys to
01:05 belong and once they belong they actually want to do it for themselves
01:08 and they want to create change themselves and they want to, you know, use
01:12 their gifts and travel and see the world and make a difference. I started Mob
01:19 because I was blessed and maybe there was a part of feeling a little guilty
01:24 that I had all the things in my life that some of these other boys didn't
01:29 have so it was my way to pay it forward which I think in turn helped my little
01:37 boy on the inside that was hurting through not fitting in the box either. I
01:41 want to build schools where love's at the centre, I want to challenge the way we do
01:46 education for youth at risk. We just need varieties and options for, you know,
01:53 these kids with special gifts, you know, that are basically being
01:58 thrown away because they don't fit in the model we've got.
02:03 you
02:05 you
02:08 (gentle music)
02:10 you