This article was written by Amanda Dobbs
The Camden neighborhoods have the honor of having some of the best schools. Our educators are dedicated, knowledgeable and obviously very flexible. They have supported our community during these unprecedented times and it’s time to take a moment to get to know a few of our wonderful educators a little better.
We posed three questions to them: What is your most profound moment as an educator? What challenges have you had to overcome? What is your hope for the future? Below are their responses.
Tameika Williams – Education Pathway Teacher/Coordinator at Henry
My most profound moments as an educator have included teaching at Henry High School, where I went to high school, as well as working as a special education teacher–working with the most marginalized students who have been told their limitations and helping them exceed the expectations placed upon them. In my work I have been able to successfully support students in setting three special education programs to be accepted into college and have continued to support them after graduation. Also, the relationships and the community I have been able to be a part of has kept me inspired and fueled my desire to be a constant change maker in my community, North Minneapolis.
As a Black woman I have had to overcome micro aggressions, racism, being a part of a system that was not created for the benefit of people like me; but persisting and understanding that I have a mission in a purpose to support young people like myself from North Minneapolis. Other challenges have included limited financial resources and supports as an educator, getting paid wages that do not reflect my level of expertise and degree status and at times feeling neglected by this system. I have also dealt with extreme levels of trauma; both my own and trauma from the community and what my students are facing which take a mental and physical toll on me at times.
My hope for the future is to continue to educate young people in a way that is revolutionary so that they understand education is the true liberation. My hope is that my students have everything they need to thrive in life, and for them to have the best educators possible because they deserve the world. My hope is that this system changes so that it no longer marginalizes and tears us down and instead is a tool to empower and prepare students for a life of excellence.
Liz Anderson – Special Education Resource Teacher, Community Connected Academy
When I realized that sharing power with my students is essential for learning and building relationships.
Learning how to balance being a case manager and a teacher; learning how to balance being a teacher and a mom; confronting my own biases; facing the impact of my whiteness on my students of color and my colleagues of color; grappling how to work within systems that are systematically unfair and often harmful. I haven’t overcome any of these yet and may never–but I’m working hard to understand them all.
My hope for the future: that our students feel their power and worth in our classrooms, and that they travel through life with empathy for their fellow humans.
Mykl Graff – Restorative Advocate
I have worked as an education support professional for over six years now, and the greatest joys I have come to find are in the communication and cooperation of students — without adults having to steer the ship so to speak. One of my most profound moments was in my second year as a Dean of Students under the title of Associate Educator at Justice Page middle school in South Minneapolis. I was facilitating a restorative conversation between two students, a young man and a young lady. The two of them had had a verbal disagreement that escalated into exchanging threats in the hallway. I sent the two of them down to have their restorative conversation, going over next steps and how it could look differently with them. What amazed me was as they processed this, they took the conversation and steered it into a direction I wasn’t necessarily prepared for. First the young lady opened up, as comments had been made about her family. She has high anxiety when it comes to existing in public spaces and beyond. She shared with us that she experienced the tragic loss of a sibling as they were walking up the street together. The young man responded in sharing that when he was younger, a family member he was home alone with went into medical duress, and ended up passing away. I got to experience a friendship developing in front of me just by the exchanging of circumstances between these students. It is something that always reminds me that no matter how much we teach, we still have much to learn as adults.
I can’t speak to many challenges. I present as white but identify as Native. The responsibility to hold others that look like me accountable is a top priority every day, because the privilege that comes with presenting as white has been placed on a societal mantle, disregarding people of color. Many of the things that we as educators are fighting for seem status quo, like mental health supports and class size caps. There is an education emergency happening, one that’s been going on for too long. We must protect our educators of color, because the system like many others in this world is not designed to support them and help them thrive. That is the crisis that I face standing shoulder to shoulder with all of my peers.
Quintessentially, that society will stop rearing its ugly head, look in the mirror, and consider all of the harm, the disrespect, the maltreatment, and the harm caused by the classism, segregation, discrimination, and so many other adjectives that are relevant to the way that minority groups are treated. By groups, I specifically mean identifiers such as race, religion, gender identity, orientation, and preference, socioeconomic status, the block you live on, the way your house looks, the kind of car you drive. As an educator, and even as a human being, I have a responsibility to this world to prepare the next generation to inherit the fruits of our existence. That comes from the elder teachings of my relations, and it is something that I attempt to carry out to the best of my ability every day.