I have known Mr. Mason for more than 15 years and have nothing but positive comments to say. I was Mr. Mason's Mentor Teacher when he first arrived at P. S. 3. We worked together as colleagues on grade five for several years. I found him to be organized, intuitive, compassionate and willing to learn how to be the best he could be for the benefit of his students. When he became a member of the Drama Department, my students interacted with him on a daily basis. He was very creative in his approach to teaching students how to speak in public, how to perform and how to exude confidence. In both positions, Mr. Mason saw a need to do more than just teach students basic academic skills. In his everyday interaction with our students, particularly our young boys, he saw a lack of positive role models. Mr. Mason took it upon himself to create the Kappa League. This endeavor involved many of his fraternity brothers sharing their time, experiences, knowledge and connections with our students. In reaching out to our students and their parents, Kappa League met on Saturdays with boys in grades four and five. There was a very moving initiation ceremony as well as a ceremony at the Fifth Grade Commencement. Both ceremonies were very impactful on not only the boys involved, but the audience as well. I remember how excited my students were on Mondays, when they wanted to share with me what had gone on at Kappa League. I recall one student was thrilled to show me how he was taught to tie his tie! The commitment to students did not end when the boys left P. S. 3. Kappa League followed the boys to middle school and high school. Mr. Mason's organization was very instrumental in allowing many of these young boys, now high school students, to navigate the college admissions process. Mr. Mason and Kappa League organized college visits and assisted with those dreaded college applications! One of my favorite students in grade five was going through a very rough time at home. His parents had recently separated and his mom was facing eviction on a daily basis as well as the hardships of being a single mom of four young children. Mr. Mason took this young man into his group and guided him. He was able to connect mom to outreach programs as well as help the student stay on his academic course. I am so thrilled to say this young man recently earned a free ride to the Tandon School of Engineering at NYU! I was privileged to attend his college signing at a ceremony organized by Mr. Mason and Kappa League. I don't think this young man would have gone as far as he has without the support, kindness, compassion, discipline and motivation of Mr. Mason and Kappa League. This is just one example of Mr. Mason’s vision and ability to put into practice what he preaches. There are many, many success stories associated with Mr. Mason and Kappa League. There is no doubt in my mind that Mr. Mason would be an excellent addition to any program involved with the development of students, particularly in the area of Education in Mentoring and Leadership..

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Lynda Costagliola