West Philly Teacher Suits Up Boys to Build Confidence

Every other week, more than two dozen elementary school boys walk into Lewis C. Cassidy School in West Philadelphia dressed in full suits, crisp neckties, and polished shoes. For most of them, it's the first time they've ever worn a suit, and the confidence shows on their faces.

Dwayne Eric Frazier, a teacher, retired firefighter, and ordained reverend, started the Distinguished Young Gentlemen club in 2021 to teach boys the life skills that changed his own trajectory. Growing up in North Philadelphia, his father taught him to tie a necktie, polish his shoes, and look people in the eye while speaking. Those lessons followed him through military service, a 26-year career with the Philadelphia Fire Department, and back to the classroom after earning his master's degree.

The club meets weekly after school, where students learn professional etiquette like firm handshakes and punctuality alongside deeper lessons in emotional intelligence and self-respect. Frazier calls it teaching boys to "think before they speak, not react with emotions." The dress code isn't just about looking sharp. It's about creating a visible standard that commands respect without saying a word.

But the real transformation happens on field trips. DYG has taken students to the White House, Congress, and Philadelphia newsrooms to see career possibilities beyond their neighborhood. In October 2025, they spent five days in Atlanta visiting Morehouse College, Clark Atlanta University, and Tyler Perry Studios. Frazier specifically chose Morehouse, the nation's only all-male historically Black college, to show his students a tangible future. "If you can see it, you can believe it," he explains.

The impact is already visible. After the Atlanta trip, one student said he wants to become a lawyer. Another declared, "I act like a gentleman, I think like a gentleman, and I look like a gentleman."

The Ripple Effect

At Cassidy Elementary, 99% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Frazier isn't just teaching etiquette. He's giving boys from underserved communities the social capital that opens doors, the confidence to walk through them, and the belief that higher education is meant for them too.

The program grew from Frazier's own childhood mentor, a Temple University student who ran a neighborhood camp in the 1970s. That early experience of being seen and guided planted a seed that took decades to bloom into DYG, which is now a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit expanding its reach beyond one school.

Eighth grader Safiy Salley sums it up best: the program gives him tools he'll carry for life, showing him that respect and preparation can change everything.