Originally from Lake Charles, Andre Harmon, a Southern University alumnus, is the current president of 100 Black Men of Baton Rouge, a nonprofit organization in which African American males step forward and assume roles of community leadership, responsibility and guidance. He is in his second year of his presidency and just last year celebrated the largest intake of new members at 84 men from all walks of life.
In 1993, 100 Black Men of Baton Rouge joined 100 Black Men of America with Brace Godfrey, Jr. as its founding president. The chapter has grown from six founders in 1993 to 300 members in 2025. The organization fosters and develops programs that build community by enhancing the lives of the area's African American youth.
This year, 100 Black Men of America recognized 100 Black Men of Baton Rouge with the Large Chapter of the Year award out of 103 chapters in the country.
Andre Harmon, president of 100 Black Men of Baton Rouge.
How did you get involved with 100 Black Men of Baton Rouge?
I joined right about 10 years ago. I had a couple of friends who were doing some community service projects, and I was intrigued by what they were doing — mentoring young men. I've always had a zeal for mentoring as well, and so I decided to look into the organization. I saw they offered a lot of wonderful programs, so I decided to join right around that time.
What does winning the 100 Black Men of America Large Chapter of the Year award mean to you?
It's one thing to do the work and try to make a difference in young people's lives, but then when you're recognized for your achievements, it's really special. It motivates us as volunteers, as leaders, and then it also gives us a great talking point because we've worked so hard to get them where they are.
Which program are you most proud of?
I can't say that. I love all of them. I can tell you that the Project Excel, that's the largest one. I don't know how many children we're going to have in August, but last year we had right at 150.
The good thing about the organization is that all of our other programs like the financial literacy program, ACT prep and Young Investors Academy are available to the kids in the mentoring program. I love all of them, but the mentoring program is probably my favorite because those are the most kids that I interact with.
We have actually touched almost every public school, alternative school and charter school in Baton Rouge through our mentoring program.
What would you like people to know about the organization that can't be found in a press release?
I've sat in meetings with School Board individuals, and we actually have members on the School Board as well. And one of the things that they stressed to me is, if you can get a child as early as the fourth grade and make sure that he can read, then the rest of his school career might really take off.
We do ACT prep and STEM. We do these things in conjunction with the Project Excel mentoring program. It's multifaceted. We just try to do what we can, when we can.
I always have to make sure I give a shout out to all the volunteers of the organization who put this thing together. We have a lot of moving pieces, but the reason why we do so well is because the volunteers that we have give 110%. I always love to acknowledge my members.
How are people's lives impacted through the mentoring and programming that 100 Black Men offers in Baton Rouge?
When I first started out, I remember one young man who was in middle school when I started. He was shy, wouldn't talk and hid behind his mom at our first meeting. He went through the programs, joined the Collegiate 100, and we followed him from middle school all the way through college. He graduated from college, and we just inducted him into the organization.
He's the first mentee to be inducted as a member of the organization. And now he's this entrepreneur working on his master's degree.
Those type of things, to me, speak volumes because it's not just about the work that we do. When you follow the kids from middle school to high school and through college, it's a really big deal for us. It makes us feel good to know that the work that we're doing is actually being received at that level.