The Eagle Academy Foundation is a nonprofit organization that aims to empower young Black and Brown men while improving students’ educational career paths and future. The foundation has six college-preparatory schools located throughout the five boroughs of New York City and Newark, N.J. Donald Ruff was recently welcomed as the foundation’s new president and CEO and shares his goals and visions for the future. Ruff has been with the Eagle Academy for 16 years, where he began as the founding director of college counseling and strategic partnerships. His dedication to education has led him to many of his accomplishments within the field, for there is no doubt that he is the perfect contender for his newly appointed position.
Ruff explains how the fuel that pushes him to do the work he does today is rooted in how he grew up. After being exposed to a private school setting and seeing how that differed from his previous public school setting, it ultimately opened his eyes to the inequalities of education. “I saw early in my life that there were some inequalities when it came to education—as a matter of fact I didn’t even know I was considered poor or low income until I went to private school,” stated Ruff. He then went on to explain that “success shouldn’t be a lottery” when expressing how everyone should be offered equal opportunities of education regardless of wealth.
The Eagle Academy works to advocate for Black and Brown youth in both school settings and beyond the classroom. Ruff explains, “It’s not just about graduating our guys, it’s about who they become in the world, and so much of that has really shaped our expanded vision at the academy.” The Eagle Academy prides itself on setting young men up for success, and also teaching them what to do with that success. Ruff explains how financial literacy and workforce readiness essential tools are the Eagle Academy pushes for, in order to ensure these young men are economically empowered even post-grad.