Anthony Brock, head of school at Valiant Cross Academy, will deliver the keynote address to graduates at Troy University’s Montgomery Campus on May 21.

The ceremony will be held at 7 p.m. inside the Davis Theatre for the Performing Arts. More than 130 graduates are expected to receive their diplomas during the ceremony.

Brock, a Montgomery native who graduated from Lanier High School and Alabama State University, worked for 13 years in the Autauga County school system, including serving as head football coach at Prattville Junior High, at-risk specialist for the Autauga County Board of Education, assistant principal at Prattville Elementary School and principal of the Second Chance Alternative School. Brock also previously served as St. Jude Educational Institute’s last principal.

Brock is the founder of the Brother2Brother and Sister2Sister mentoring program that still meets regularly in Autauga and Montgomery counties. He serves on the Alabama Leadership Council for the Alabama Opportunity Scholarship Fund, the Board of Directors at the Southeast Y.M.C.A. in Montgomery and the Prattville Y.M.C.A., and is also a former board member on the Autauga County Character Coalition.

Brock has been honored as Entrepreneur of the Year at the Alabama Black Achievers Gala, and was selected by the Alabama Power Company as an “Alabama Bright Light.” He also has been honored by Troy University and Alabama State University with the Martin Luther King Jr. Beloved Community Award and was selected to Alabama State University’s “50 Under 50” inaugural alumni class.

In addition, Brock is a former recipient of The Montgomery Advertiser’s Martin Luther King Jr. Spirit Award and was selected as the Citizen of the Year by the Montgomery alumni chapters of Delta Sigma Theta and Kappa Alpha Psi in 2016. He, along with his brother Frederick, were honored by Montgomery’s First Congregational Church with the 2016 Daring to Make a Difference Award.

Brock is an active member of St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church in Montgomery where he serves as a steward, men’s usher, Sunday school teacher and a member of the Men’s Chorus. He and his wife, D’Tanja, have two daughters.

Opened in 2015, Valiant Cross Academy is an all-male, private school that seeks to provide excellent educational experiences for its scholars. The school’s vision is to increase the literacy rate, attendance rate and ultimately the graduation rate of scholars, providing them with the skills necessary to become lifelong learners and productive citizens. The school began its first year with a sixth grade class with the goal to add a new class each year through the 12th grade. Beginning in August, the school will expand, leasing space at Troy University’s Montgomery Campus in order to house its eighth and ninth grade classes.

Since the school’s opening, Valiant Cross Academy has been showcased in local print publications, WSFA 12’s “Making a Difference” report, WAKA 8’s “What’s Right with Our Schools” report, and recognized by the USA Today as a 50K grant winner in there “A Community That Thrives Program.” The school received the 2017 Community Service Award from Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.