The program model requires that monthly curriculum sessions are conducted during the school day. Educators who deliver the program are trained in the curriculum by the national Best Friends and Best Men instructors.
When a school system enters into a licensing agreement with the Best Friends Foundation, it agrees to provide the program model to boys beginning in the fifth or sixth grade and continuing on through middle school (eighth grade). School systems are then encouraged to begin the high school Best Men Leadership program on Saturdays. The Best Men program model requires that monthly curriculum discussions are conducted during the school day, that educators delivering the program are trained in the curriculum, and that they use the curriculum materials developed by the Foundation. Each school system is responsible for securing the financial and community support necessary for the program's operation. Support may come from many sources, including donations from individuals and corporations, funds allocated by the local school board or from grants from the community and national foundations. Best Men programs may be supported by character and youth development, sex education, drug and alcohol prevention, AIDS prevention, and public health grants awarded by federal, state, and local governments.
Best Men programs may operate in public, private, and religious schools. Information about beginning a Best Men program is available from:
Best
Friends Foundation
5335 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W., Suite 440
Washington, DC 20015
Phone: (202) 478-9677
Fax: (202) 478-9678
