Sunday Morning Magazine With Rodney Lear

Our guest, Akbar Cooks says when he found out that 85% of this students were missing 3 to 5 days of school per month because they didn’t have clean clothes—and that they were being bullied in school and through social media because of it—he vowed to make a difference. Mr. Cook says he wrote a grant and raised funds to install a laundromat in the school. Mr. Cook spoke on-air about some of the issues his students face outside the school that become barriers to their success in the classroom. Principal Cook admits that his story went viral and captured the attention of Ellen DeGeneres. He spoke about his recent appearance on Ellen’s talk show.