‘Black Girls in Blazers’ empowering girls, women through mentoring

OAKLAND — Shontrice Slayton, an academic counselor and entrepreneur with a clothing line business and wellness brand that she runs, has figured out the power of mentoring. 

Part of Slayton’s routine in which she mentors others is getting together with her own mentor. It is a breath of fresh air between Slayton’s hours on the clock when she has to be back in the office at school or tending to her other endeavors.

As an academic counselor at Aspire Golden State College Preparatory in Oakland, “Miss Slay,” as the kids call her, sets the foundation for her students to thrive.

“My plan in order for them to be successful in their classrooms and have the support they just need,” explained Slayton.

It is a lot of work. This is just one of two schools Slayton counsels at where it takes a lot of patience and grace. In the office, all her focus is on what she can do to better her kids. Miss Slay is all about wellness for her students, both academically and mentally.

“To know that they have a chance, to not feel overwhelmed or defeated or that they don’t have anyone,” said Slayton. “Because if they show up, it’s just another day for them to show out.”

When she is back to being Shontrice, though, she knows she needs to show up for herself. Every other Thursday, Slayton takes a break from being Miss Slay and heads over to Lake Merritt.

Slayton moved to Oakland from Memphis in 2020. It is a fresh start and a new place where she has been able to fulfill all her many goals. This quick break from the office is valuable time for this busy school counselor to juggle all the many hats she wears throughout her day.

It is important for her to fit this in, just a few minutes to meet with her mentor, Felicia Harris.

“I am just so thankful to have someone like Felicia in my life,” said Slayton. “To be seen, to be heard, to be thought about.”

She makes sure to fit this time in with Harris so she can be the best “Shontrice” for herself, and the best “Miss Slay” for her kids at school.

“I am a baby in this business,” said Slayton. “So I want to bring in people to help me do good.”

Slayton met Harris through a friend after she moved to California. They were a perfect match for the support Slayton was looking for and for what she really needed to find success in her new home.

“I just met her but there was something about her,” remembered Slayton. “She has to be my mentor, she has to. She was like, ‘You want me?’ And I was like, ‘I want you!’ And ever since then she like took me under her wing.”

Because of Harris, Slayton is proud to be a “black girl in a blazer.”

Black Girls in Blazers Inc. is an organization Harris created to empower young women.

When she meets with people like Slayton, Harris is living out the mission of her organization of making women feel confident in their “blazer.” To Harris, the blazer is a statement of pride and confidence, she wants all girls to hold onto one blazer at all times, to always have that confidence boost on standby.

Harris also creates a space for women of color to feel heard and understood.

“We have been there, we can relate,” states Harris. “You want to always find someone that you can relate to.”

Black Girls in Blazers hosts events around Oakland for youth girls to come together and learn life and career skills. But it is in these small moments that Harris creates, like this one with Slayton, that she can really get her message out to the leaders of her statement.

“The premise for Black Girls in Blazers is to make sure that we provide them with the opportunity to say ‘I am beautiful, I am powerful and I am confident,'” said Harris. “And if we can get them to believe that, that is all we are here for.”