New Haven Independent

Ellis was one of three dozen girls who spent part or all day at Hillhouse High School for the first-ever Sisters of Today and Tomorrow conference in New Haven

It wa, pulled together by Carla Morrison, a Hillhouse grad (class of 1988) with the recently realized inspiration of her mother, another strong black New Haven woman.

Morrison (pictured on the left with local hip hop artist, 4Eva, who performed) now lives in Atlanta. For the past six years she has presented workshops there on higher education and entrepreneurship, self-esteem, and powerful African American women as role models for the girls of today.

For this conference — which attracted attendees to come back to “school” during Christmas break — Morrison called upon her network of girlfriends, many of whom graduated from local high schools. All are now successful professionals with careers in education, counseling, public speaking, and journalism.

The day included a self-esteem workshop, an aerobics workout, an art class, and pep talks by the women mentors. It culminated in a “sister circle” that was intended as a wide open rap session involving younger people. Morrison invited the girls to ask questions about any topic, including sex, dating, school, bullying — whatever was on their minds.

That didn’t exactly happen. Something perhaps even more meaningful did.

Regina Young, a motivational speaker who drove up early in the morning from Philadelphia with her two children in tow, couldn’t elicit those kinds of questions from the 15 or so middle- and high school-age girls who were still in the room at the end of the day.

So she switched gears. SHe asked each of them to share something they learned during the course of the day that would lead them to live differently going forward.

“I’m going to be a little more empathetic to my young sisters, because they have a lot going on — body changes, hormones, peer pressure. The world is hard,” she said.

Each girl or adult in turn expressed a heartfelt lesson. One woman emphasized how all choices have consequences. Another said each girl must consider herself her top priority.

Rian Santana (pictured), said simply, “I should dream more.” Earlier in the day, “DREAM” had been defined as “a divinely revealed event awaiting manifestation.” So the meaning was clear that any dreamer had an active role to play in achieving her dream.

A couple of the girls said their lesson was, “It’s OK to be different and follow my own heart.”

When it was her turn to speak, Bettye Morrison (pictured, with her daughter Carla behind her on the right) said, “I’m one big teardrop.” She was so moved she could hardly speak; she kept apologizing for being so emotional. “I am so proud, because when you are in the process of raising your children, it does not come with a manual. So you don’t know if you are doing the right thing or not. I had no idea Carla was listening to me 20 years, 30 years ago, and what I see here today touches my heart.”

The elder Morrison, now 65, earned a master’s degree in counseling and worked at Connecticut Mental Health Center before starting her own psychotherapy practice. She recently retired.

Just before starting the circle, the younger Morrison, who’s 39, said she had thought Sisters of Tomorrow was her idea, but recently realized it was her mother’s. “When I was young, she had a group of girls she would take different places and expose to different experiences.” Carla said that’s exactly the goal of the work she is doing now.

Dymin Ellis, 12, was one of the last to speak. She said she learned that, “Some things you like about yourself and some things you probably don’t, but you can try to improve.”

After the conference ended, Ellis, a student at Celentano School, was asked if it met her expectations. She said it was different from what she expected, which was to sit in an auditorium, not a school classroom, and be entertained by celebrities speaking from the stage. Morrison’s publicity emphasized the appearance of celebrities, She said afterward that they weren’t able to make it, and she preferred not naming them. One celebrity who did come was Victoria Espiritusanto (pictured with her mentor, Corinne Thomas), a student at High School in the Community and Miss Teen Belleza International 2010.

Ellis said rather than sit passively, she had to participate and work throughout the day. “It was better” that way, she said.