Southland Students Place First in Yorkville Step Invitational

Southland College Prep Charter High School students are learning and excelling at an African American cultural art form of stepping as members of the Kappa League step team.

Last week, the Kappa League step team took first place in the Yorkville Invitational, performing a routine of precision moves and rhythmic chants to a standing-room only auditorium at Yorkville Middle School.

The Kappa League team will own the spotlight at Southland College Prep on Saturday, February 18 when it hosts the Kappa League High School Step Competition. Four middle schools and 12 high schools are expected to compete.

The Kappa League is the national youth initiative of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Dr. Corey Levy, Southland’s director of operations, is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi and director of the Kappa League program that meets at Southland College Prep in Richton Park. The team has traveled throughout the state to various step competitions.

Under the direction of Dr. Levy, Southland College Prep students have studied the “why” and importance of stepping and practiced vigorously the “how” to prepare for competition, Levy said.

“Being the top finisher in a big field like Yorkville is a great accomplishment for these young people,” said Levy. “It points directly to the discipline students invest in producing an award-winning performance.”

Dr. Blondean Y. Davis, Southland’s CEO, is excited about students learning about an art form traditionally performed by Black fraternities and sororities that many believe has its roots in Africa and American slavery.

“Our role as educators is to introduce rich art forms to our students,” said Davis. “Stepping is one of those art forms that is part of our African American heritage.”

According to historians, a South Carolina slave rebellion in the 1700s in which the slaves beat drums as they walked down the streets, led to the banning of drums and the development of enslaved African Americans using more percussive dances, as the body replaced the drum, and became known as juba, step’s precursor.

In the early 1900s, step evolved into what it is today when African Americans started attending colleges and universities and formed fraternities and sororities—sometimes on hostile, predominantly white campuses.

The nine historically African American fraternities and sororities, known as the “Divine Nine,” transformed juba into step. Step thrived in the shadows of early American Black college life as a group dance performance and a means of expression during racially hostile times and settings, according to historians.

Levy said that being part of the step team and the Kappa League helps young Black men gain the sense of camaraderie that they might find if they choose to join a fraternity in college.

“The step team was started to give everybody a sense of belonging,” Levy said. “It teaches our young Black men that in order to succeed you have to be disciplined.”

“I joined Kappa League because it was different than other clubs,” said Southland senior Christopher Siller. “It has taught me discipline and what true brotherhood looks like.”