Standing in Your Truth With Yanni
Tales from an Educator: Navigating Diversity and Resilience
Have you ever wondered how a seasoned educator navigates the challenges of teaching in today's world? Take a seat with us as we engage with Angela Love Jackson, a dedicated teacher with 29 years of experience. Angela takes us through her riveting journey, sharing her experience of teaching US history, adapting her approach to diverse student groups, and discussing her family's educational background that influenced her career.
Angela doesn't just stop at sharing her personal journey, she takes us into the realities of being a black woman in education, exploring the resilience, faith, and the strength of her support system. We delve into the lives of siblings, life-altering moments, and hear from a student in the Alverno College doctoral program about their experiences. In an enlightening conversation, Angela shares about the challenges faced by at-risk African-American students in rural West Texas, emphasizing the socio-economic factors and lack of support that they often encounter.
We also take a deep dive into the importance of cultural awareness in the classroom, exploring teaching strategies for African-American students. Angela spotlights the importance of recognizing children's feelings and how understanding their emotional needs can tremendously impact their educational journey. We touch on the barriers in higher education, the benefits of attending historically black colleges and universities, and the significance of understanding college insignias. This episode wraps up with a heart-to-heart chat about starting a podcast, community involvement, and finding one's purpose in life. Join us on this enlightening journey as we unpack these compelling stories and experiences.
Have you ever wondered how a seasoned educator navigates the challenges of teaching in today's world? Take a seat with us as we engage with Angela Love Jackson, a dedicated teacher with 29 years of experience. Angela takes us through her riveting journey, sharing her experience of teaching US history, adapting her approach to diverse student groups, and discussing her family's educational background that influenced her career.
Angela doesn't just stop at sharing her personal journey, she takes us into the realities of being a black woman in education, exploring the resilience, faith, and the strength of her support system. We delve into the lives of siblings, life-altering moments, and hear from a student in the Alverno College doctoral program about their experiences. In an enlightening conversation, Angela shares about the challenges faced by at-risk African-American students in rural West Texas, emphasizing the socio-economic factors and lack of support that they often encounter.
We also take a deep dive into the importance of cultural awareness in the classroom, exploring teaching strategies for African-American students. Angela spotlights the importance of recognizing children's feelings and how understanding their emotional needs can tremendously impact their educational journey. We touch on the barriers in higher education, the benefits of attending historically black colleges and universities, and the significance of understanding college insignias. This episode wraps up with a heart-to-heart chat about starting a podcast, community involvement, and finding one's purpose in life. Join us on this enlightening journey as we unpack these compelling stories and experiences.
Hello everyone, welcome to season two of Standing Youth Podcast. I'm your host, yanni. On this podcast you will hear myself, family and friends having open-ended discussions on anything from faith, finances, relationships and how to stay motivated during life trying times. Make sure you follow me on all my social media. Link is in the bio. Sit back and get ready to enjoy. Hello, hello, hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of Standing Youth Podcast with your host, Yanni, the one and only.
Speaker 1:Anyway, how are you guys doing? Happy it's not happy Christmas, it's definitely Merry Christmas. I got there wrong. You know why I said happy? Because it's my birthday month. So happy birthday to me. But anyway it's the 22nd. Just in case anybody wants to send me a gift or send me Uber Eats or something or coffee, I'll take all the above. But anyway, how's everyone doing? I do realize this time is a little bit of a rough time for some. Holidays are always not the most pleasant for some. So you guys are definitely in my thoughts and prayers, but I'm here again with another guest. I'm going to let her introduce herself.
Speaker 2:Greetings salutations everyone. My name is Angela Love Jackson and I am so grateful. Yanni, Happy early birthday, Thank you.
Speaker 1:You're welcome.
Speaker 2:I'd give you a gift, but I'm waiting on you to earn this gift. Oh man, look at this gift to see what it says.
Speaker 1:Oh, you know what?
Speaker 2:Anyways, it's a private joke. She'll have to explain it to you. Her aunt Mara and I, her cousins Mariah and Alicia, understand what's understood does not have to be said that part, that part for sure, but I do. Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your podcast, for various reasons. One this is part of my requirements.
Speaker 1:Hey, you know what? It's always cool to know people who can help you get the job done Look that's why you do what you do.
Speaker 2:You make sure you know somebody that can help you and that you can help give them more. So there you go.
Speaker 1:So before we kind of get started with anything, I want to tell me a little about you. So I know you work at Permian, right, yes, ma'am. So what exactly do you do? How long have you been in education?
Speaker 2:I have worked in Ector County ISD for 29 years 29 years.
Speaker 1:Yes, ma'am, how old am I? I'll be 33.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 1:Thank you.
Speaker 2:Yanni For 29 years. Yes, and then I've actually been at Permian High School for 25 years. Seriously. This year marks 25 years.
Speaker 2:I always have taught US history. The first four years I taught eighth grade US history at. It used to be Hood Junior High and it's still Hood Junior High to me, but others call it Wilson and Young Middle School and then Permian High School. I teach 11th grade US history. I teach dual credit, which means I'm an adjunct with Odessa College. I also have taught AP. I've taught the regular. I have taught ESL.
Speaker 2:I have taught we used to have a course called Advanced Social Studies. It was geared towards your upper level, high level students, but it kind of dissolved. And then one year, one semester I think for sure it was just one time they had me teach, alongside all those world history, one section of it and they decided and I decided I don't know who decided more that was not for me, but US history and I tell my students every year I learned something new. Even after all these years I can't say that I teach one year exactly the same. I make some shifts as things happen in the world. I find a way to dig back into history to see how they evolve. My number one goal is for my students to see themselves in history. So depending on the group of students I have in class that will determine when I started seeing I had more Filipino students in the recent years. I started looking when did Filipinos first start coming to America? To America, and I was surprised. So those kind of things.
Speaker 1:That's interesting for sure. I think my 11th grade history class I definitely ate in the back do most of that class History. I think I've been missing the dates so my foundation is shaky. Or maybe this doesn't exist, so history to me is just all of it.
Speaker 2:But you don't always teach the dates. I tried to teach time periods.
Speaker 1:He was teaching dates, so I was like bro, I don't know what year, and then I just lexics, so the numbers get a little flipped, oh yeah.
Speaker 2:Certainly in certain few dates do I expect them to remember, but I do teach time periods. Make sure you know what was happening before and how it evolved into this and how, because of this, it evolved into this and go from there. Not at all. You just need to come back and get in my class.
Speaker 1:No, I don't, but I also do at times.
Speaker 2:I've taught some online classes with OC as well.
Speaker 1:Oh well, I made you do that class. Yeah, I get some adult learners too, because I'm like no, I don't Okay. Well, with that being said, what motivates you?
Speaker 2:Retirement motivates you? Because after 29 years it's sadly Yanni. I find myself at times because this is being honest for the past few years I'm like what else can I do? You got a point there. And I'm like, well, if I can't teach, what else do I do? And then my brother reminded me we're all in education in my family let me put that out there. My parents are both educators over 30-something years. My brother's been a principal, a teacher well, band director, teacher and administrator, for it's gotta be 20, well, 15 to 20 years for sure and he reminded me that one of the biblical spiritual gifts is to teach.
Speaker 2:That helped for another year To add. Again. I went to what else am I supposed to be doing, lord? Why do you have me here? He has you there for a reason. He does, and I'm blessed. I've been blessed to have some of the finest. I've been blessed to have even some of the worst and still work out a good rapport with them. I've learned from my students every year. I have a responsibility to also learn. I tell people I learn just as much as I teach. So well, maybe not, but I learn a lot. I learn from the kids too.
Speaker 1:I feel like that's like me every time I record a podcast episode. It's like obviously I don't know everything, but it's like sometimes the simple stuff is what my guest reminds me of. So I understand that for sure. But if you're not, learning.
Speaker 2:Why are you living?
Speaker 1:Right, and people who think they know everything. I'm like you really don't, Because then absolutely we know nothing.
Speaker 2:Right To everyone who is here in this podcast, I apologize. We put two of my dogs out and they're outside and they are communicating with us on the inside. See, that's Murphy and then there's Lady, but they're also alerting us of people driving by or a bird flying, or a leaf just flying, or the fact that it's probably no one will be outside, they'll be all right.
Speaker 1:But the next question is with you teaching and being in it for so long, how do you protect your mental health, or do you, maybe I do?
Speaker 2:I will tell you. First of all, there is nothing wrong with seeking guidance from certified psychologists, psychiatrists. I've even utilized them myself. I was going through a health situation where it was required in order for me. Well, I don't make it a secret, I had a bariatric surgery the sleeve, and one of the requirements of my doctor was that you had to be analyzed by a psychiatrist, and I appreciated that and I was, like you know, I need this.
Speaker 2:As black women, we think we can do it all, and that's part of this mystique that's out there and it's a mistake. But truly, I stand on faith, my faith in God. I do believe him to be who he is, and so I do believe him to be who he says he is. And as long as I know he's got my back, I don't live in fear. I have my concerns, I have my nervous, I have things that happen that come in my life, dealing with something right now, but I don't walk in fear Because I know he is with me and his rod is guiding me, his staff is guiding me and I do believe that when I am at the table, my enemies might be present, but they get to watch me eat good, and he will be with me for the rest of my life. He knows the plans that he has for me. I stand by that, and so he doesn't let things happen. Even when the devil, satan, tries to sharpen his darts at me, I believe there's a shield of protection.
Speaker 2:So when you ask me, how have I done it so long? That? But I have to be real, not just spiritually, but I have good friends. You have to have a good relationship with colleagues, but some people are just your associates and colleagues. But then you just need a few good friends that you can banter, some that know exactly what you're going through, because they're in it too. I'm great to have some friends that are in education and then some folks who don't have anything to do with education. That way we're not always talking about education. So those three things, and then the last one, of course, is my family, and they're not in any particular order. God is always first, but friends, family and a self-awareness of who and what I am. I'm 52 years old and I've lived enough life half a century. I ought to know something and I ought to be able to handle some things.
Speaker 1:So with that, what advice would you give your younger self?
Speaker 2:Don't do it. Oh no, no, rock Johnny. It's sad because now here I am on my soap box. You will go on social media. I was looking at so many of friends of mine that are teachers and we started off 25 to 30 years ago and all of us would tell ourselves don't do it If we knew what we were gonna be dealing with right now, because education is just not the same. We are required to test so much with state mandated, at district mandate, and I understand the point of it. But my soap box is if you're doing six weeks of testing, what am I teaching? Years ago and since I got the platform, I'm a go there Years ago we had convocation. I still remember this vividly. It had to been the first or second convocation ECIC really did.
Speaker 2:And this man in the middle of his speech got almost a standing ovation. He said either he's got family or immediate family or some relatives that are farmers. That part doesn't matter, other than he knew farming. And he says you don't plant a seed and then take it out every three to six weeks to see how it's growing. You plant that seed.
Speaker 2:now you see why we stood and clapped. You plant that seed, you nurture that seed with the water. You feed you're fertilize it, but then you just let God do what he does. If I am doing my part as a teacher with a student nurturing them, feeding them, watering them, supplying them the necessary nutrients then months later I don't even have to dig to see how it's growing. It will break through the ground and it will flourish itself. So that's how I believe we should do and we don't.
Speaker 2:So my younger self would have said Angela, you should have gone and got that law degree. You wanted to be a lawyer. I really did. I wanted to be a lawyer till I was probably ooh, in high school, maybe my early college, because my parents were being educated said go on and get your certification. It's always a good backup. That's what they used to tell us. It's always a good backup because they always need a teacher and somewhere in there it twisted and changed to where I was like instead of because I always know I want to be a defense lawyer. Why wait till they need a defense attorney? Get them before they need somebody to defend them and you can help mold and change their path and I really believe that and that's why I became an educator and people think I'm playful when I say it but I'll sell the vacation days and that seems so humorous.
Speaker 2:But I looked at my friends who parents weren't in education. They only got two weeks of a break. And so I had friends who were latchkey kids or they couldn't go anywhere during the summer because their folks were working the whole time, well, both my parents being in education. Although my father taught even summer school, even at OC, but also through East SST, he was done by July. So we still had some summer, we still had Christmas breaks. We knew we could be two weeks off and it was real clear come Thanksgiving when my family would come from Dallas and walk to Hatchey. They came late Wednesday night, really early Thursday morning for Thanksgiving and they left after the Cowboys game because somebody had to go to work on Friday. Yeah, yeah, and so I don't. I say it but I'm sincere when I say it I knew I was gonna have a family and I wanted to be able to have family time and not have to work throughout the year, 350 days of the year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I just realized how nice that schedule is because of Erin and we had Thanksgiving recently and it was off the whole week, which my schedule wasn't terrible. I got off Wednesday at noon and didn't have to go back to work til Monday.
Speaker 2:And that's the way it used to be when I was a kid, even from my parents, but then, through time, we get a whole week off, which makes it even better. Yeah, so I'm just like.
Speaker 1:So I'm sitting here and then, like Christmas, and he's telling, and I'm like, and man, I'm thinking I could really go to somebody's school and be like a attendance clerk or something.
Speaker 2:Look, we're needing some right now. We're needing an attendance clerk, two social studies teacher and an assistant principal.
Speaker 1:I'm not trying to be nosy. I cannot teach our studies Like the kids ain't gonna learn nothing.
Speaker 2:Well, you could be the. I could be the clerk, for sure, you could be the attendance clerk.
Speaker 1:For sure, you need a job.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, that's what I would tell my younger self, though, and the pay hadn't gotten much better. You don't become an educator. You don't become an educator for the pay. Only folks who are making money in education are those who are making the test, in my opinion, and those who write books that other people are willing to buy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's one thing I've always just it baffles me is how we pay them to all the athletes and all this. They get those millions of dollars, but you have those athletes after starting someone's classroom, most times, anyway.
Speaker 2:Even a coach who taught them some stuff. Yeah, but it's like, why are we not? But that's a whole another give me for one more podcast.
Speaker 1:I'm like that's a whole something else. All right, so what is one moment that shaped your life? Gosh, that's been quite a few, or you can give me a top three.
Speaker 2:Top three, the hardest one, and I was telling some friends because of a situation I'm going with there, like are you doing okay? I said you know I go back and look at the hardest I ever had in my life. That was August 4th 1998. The morning of 423 AM, I believe, is when my father passed. I made it through that day so I know I can make it through any day. So that shapes me because I was such a daddy's girl that I had to depend on the true father, but it taught me I had to persevere through some things. I still miss him. Ooh, I could talk to George Love right now. I would. How many siblings do you have? Just me and my brother? Oh, so just two, just two of us. I've got a younger, bigger brother. George is much taller than me but we're six and a half years apart and we got closer though when daddy passed we had started getting there the older he got. I was always great, but my brother took time for him to get there.
Speaker 1:So Just me sugar man. Hey, yana, I love what she said.
Speaker 2:Okay, anyways. Yeah, that's the first thing. What was the question? Again? Cause you know, I bantered.
Speaker 1:What is one moment that shaped you? So you said the first one was your father passing away.
Speaker 2:The second one was the birth of my son, which actually happened before that, because I became a mother, I became a better teacher. The day I became a mother, I think as Christian progressed through school it changed my understanding, my compassion for students. I don't mean any hurt, harm or danger to anybody, but you can nine times out of 10, tell those teachers they have no children Because their patience, their compassion they don't understand. Even, for instance, some teachers will do what we call a grade dump. All of a sudden they put in 10 grades, five grades, the difference it can change in a kid's average. That moment, when you decide to load all these grades in, I understood it more so when my son was a student, had an 80 something average and a teacher dumped in about eight grades and it dropped his average big time, I said, oh no, sir, we won't. So having him, maybe that way, having my day, I guess I say becoming a parent, because even having my daughter it made it different, because I was older and it's a female. She is a female, not yet so even having to teach her, I would say being married when I turned 40.
Speaker 2:The year I turned 40, we could just sum that all up in the one. I got married that March. I had Jazea that November, three days before I turned 41. That whole year was something else, because Jazea was a twin. I was pregnant with twins, lost one of the twins while I was pregnant, so I was carrying life and death at the same time, and so I had to mourn and celebrate at the same time. So those but that year again. Death teaches you so much. But if nothing else, death teaches you about life. You mentioned earlier that this is a tough time of the year for a lot of people. What it has taught me? I miss my loved ones, but it has taught me to appreciate living, not keep my focus on death and dying, but remember remembering the life they lived and, even more so, push for me to continue to live, but not just live, but live.
Speaker 1:Yes, lord, that is definitely good. What is your mindset when you're told no?
Speaker 2:The first question you wanna ask is why? But sometimes your response is okay. 52 years has taught me that God will give you a yes, a no or a wait. So I've learned to accept a no when, especially because I believe in God's design. I'm not trying to be so spiritual here.
Speaker 1:My trust me.
Speaker 2:I can still throw a good tantrum when I'm told no, but I understand that the no comes for a reason because he knows what is best for me. He knows what is to come and there's a reason for that no.
Speaker 1:I've definitely had to realize that, and I think I'm still in that process.
Speaker 2:Well understand that that no is a no, sometimes because something greater is coming, and if you were given a yes then you might miss what the greater was. So the no is important, and then if you didn't ever receive a no, yeah, it's very important. If you didn't receive a no, then you couldn't always appreciate the yes. That's true too. Imagine being let down for five jobs. It's hard to go apply for that six job, but when that six job says yes, you appreciate that even more. So If you were given, and it's probably a better job than the first five.
Speaker 1:None times out of 10, it's always, always worse. It's always worse, especially if you're relying on him, Exactly exactly. I agree, I've had to kind of realize that, but it's something beautiful in realizing that as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the no's are not always bad.
Speaker 1:No, they've actually been quite lovely for me.
Speaker 2:This just pops in my head, except the no, because he knows, and he knows what's best.
Speaker 1:Okay, come on and preach there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, let the church save me.
Speaker 1:All right. Well, on top of you teaching and being a mother and being a wife and being a friend and being a line sisters at the correct terminology, well, I'm a Soror for Alpha Kappa, alpha Sorority Incorporated. Okay well.
Speaker 2:So I have Soros and so yes, and I know my line. Sisters are some of my greatest friends.
Speaker 1:And I know that you guys are involved in the community and I know you're involved in your church. On top of all of that, I have realized and found out that you also are in the process of getting your is it? Doctorate. Am I saying that correctly, correct?
Speaker 2:my doctorate.
Speaker 1:What inspired? That?
Speaker 2:When I was in high school. My maiden name, of course, is Love, and somebody gave me the nickname the Love Doctor or Doctor Love, and I was the uniform captain in the band and so I was one of the first ones to leave the band as they were getting ready for the football team to come back at halftime. I was getting ready so I could collect plumes and the student section would be yelling Love, doctor, doctor, love, doctor, love, and it even made it in the yearbook, really, yeah. And so part of it was because they felt they called me Doctor Love was because I could give good advice. So their mindset that was another thing. I thought about being was a psychologist, but their mindset was that I always had good advice. Go see the doctor, go ask Doctor Love, and so I liked it. I liked the way it sounded. I'm a whole lot. I liked the way Doctor Love sounded. I knew the love doctor, and so it does have a key reason, doesn't it sound?
Speaker 2:good it does. So I started with the mindset my parents grew up from humble beginnings but they got master's degree Right after getting their bachelor's. They were working and teaching but they were going back during summers, and all that working on their master's degree. So it's no surprise that my brother and I both got a master's degree. I think he started before I did and I wasn't gonna let him outdo me. That is what happened, and so he got his. But I got mine right after him, like by a semester, and then I was like you know what, let's go get this doctorate. He says you got it. Even to this day, he says you got it. I'm here to support you, but I let some time go.
Speaker 2:After I got my master's degree I knew I needed to continue. So there was about 10 years in between my bachelor's and my master's and then I started moving and that timing is a little off on that, but I started getting my master's degree and then my doctorate. I started then I can't even tell you the exact date, but I was doing it through Texas Tech, where I got my bachelor's and I got all and it was in curriculum and instruction Got all the way to all the dissertation, abd, and that's where they let you be on your own. And I am the worst procrastinator and I couldn't even marry a topic and they'll tell you anybody who's getting a doctorate. It's been through this new program I'm in and I'm not wording it correctly, but your dissertation is just a snippet of your educational knowledge and what you will do. I tended to make it my life work. That's what it was. It was almost becoming. I was trying to make it my life's work. I've even been challenged with it. This time. It's not my life's work, it's just a little segment of my life.
Speaker 2:And so, going through that, I had started giving myself my own sabbaticals and taking breaks. Then I just got tired of it. I got married, had my daughter Josiah and then I was like, ooh, keep living. Then I got sick and while I was in my bed I was like, well, I can't seem to get back to work, I can't seem anything else. And I've never forgotten it. My number one regret in life was that I hadn't received my doctorate. Out of everything I've done mistakes, I've made my number one regret. I believe God has kept me on this earth so I can continue and at least get this doctorate. So that was my number one regret.
Speaker 2:And while I was, as I call it, my bed of affliction, I started calling. I contacted Texas Tech and they had told me that after all those years I had set out so long that I was pretty much gonna have to start over. They might have accepted six years. I was like I don't shoot now. That's a lot of money and a lot of more time. I even contacted oh shoot online people Everybody knows them, phoenix online and I was like they were gonna accept maybe nine hours, that's a lot, but that's not enough for much work, as I put in. So I pretty much give it up. And wouldn't you know it, while I'm laying in my bed of affliction, seriously in a medical bed it's family sleep. So I'm just going through time through my phones, through the timeline of Facebook, I out pops this ad for Alverno College and it says have you gotten all the dissertation? Do you wanna continue and finish it up? Will accept you, regardless of how long you've set out. I kid you not. I was like this cannot be real.
Speaker 1:Facebook is listening to me. Okay, really, the.
Speaker 2:Facebook. Gods, I was telling my professor and advisor, some others that the other night it was hard to believe. And so I looked and it's in Milwaukee, wisconsin. I ain't never heard of Milwaukee but I've heard of it. Don't know where it was and I teach you as history. So all I knew was somewhere up north from me, midwest, and it wasn't somewhere I had ever planned or anticipated on visiting. And, might I add, this was in the midst of COVID.
Speaker 2:So it worked out for me in several different ways. So Alverno had started this new doctoral program in education. It wasn't brand new, but it was fairly new. They'd already had a cohort or two to go through and so they were finessing things and I checked them out and the first lady I dealt with her name is Renata. Oh my gosh, would I tell you she's gotta be a saint, an angel, the way she welcomed me in and helped me with my experiencing, even in just applying, helping me say no, go get this transcript. I had to go all the way back to my junior college OC transcript to get it all of that. But she waited and helped me and guided me and said write your letter. She is. And here's how good Alverno was. So I tell them I'm the ambassador for Alverno in West Texas, in Texas. Anybody who knows me as a friend has heard of Alverno College and we had never heard of them before.
Speaker 2:But Renata started it off and then I got to meet who was gonna be the Dean of Students that December because this started in October and my classes were gonna start at the end of that January and I was about 47, 48 years old 2020 is when this all started and I said, okay, he wanted to meet with us. He had a time. I said, oh, the sales. Okay, this is real promising. No problem, oh, it might I add. All I had to pay was $100 and something, just to get started. Do you hear me? So I was like, okay, if I lose $100 and something, oh well, I didn't lose thousands of dollars, but it was starting to get better. The week classes were supposed to start, I heard back from Renata. I just wanna check on you. You know your classes are starting. Are you ready? Are you excited?
Speaker 1:I mean, I'm like.
Speaker 2:Who does that in college? Not in any schools, and especially grad doctoral program, when the college that I spent all my money in. I was in Lubbock last night and I drove by a tech and I love tech to tech, oh, I'm a proud rate of girl I said look at that educational building I helped build.
Speaker 2:That's not funny, but Y'all are gonna make me go start all over and this program is doing this for me. And then when I looked up and looked at my advice, my professors, and looked at, oh she looks just like me. Oh, that's sweet. In all my years of college, my junior college, my bachelor's and my master's degree, I had not one time had a black instructor. I had only had one or two Hispanic. Everyone else was white, anglo-saxon. I had a Russian, I had an Asian. He was from Japan and he was a visiting professor during my bachelor's. But for the first time I was gonna have a black professor. That was the first course. The second course I had another one, the third one I had, I say, hot dog. But it wasn't just that. The people they put me with in my cohort became fast friends and that's why I will forever.
Speaker 2:If, when I get this degree, if Alverno were to say, angelou, you want to come be our ambassador for real, I would accept that job. They wouldn't, they could. I want him to pay me because I'd be Dr Love Jackson. But I really I would be so proud because of the way this program has been, not only while. Part of the problem was before and things might have changed in this many years. So let me be clear on that no snub to Texas Tech. But while you're working on your coursework and they have two different paths, the ABD and this one and now I'm doing it in ad leadership, not curriculum and instruction, okay, but while I'm doing coursework, I'm also doing dissertation work, meeting with my advisor every week or every other week, it depends on the. You know how you and your advisor do it. She's been my number one editor and shout out to Dr Seth Westfall. So that has been what my love for this program is being. She's helping me in my writing and the historian teaching me is where my challenges come. Throughout this whole program, in fact, they helped me because, in fact, next week, on the 16th, is when I should have been graduating.
Speaker 2:I'm not. I fell behind in doing some of my writing, but they won't let me feel bad about it. They're like okay, you can be on your own timeline, you don't have to. And I think it was my advisor that reminded me she's as angel. I believe. You're a believer, you're a Christian, and in their scripture that says the race is not given to the swift but to the strong. I'm like, oh, she says so, you just got to straighten up. I was like, okay, yes, now she wasn't trying to preach to me, she was reminding me of my own convictions and, if it wasn't said, it was one of my advice, it was one of. I consider all my professors, my advisors. To be honest, they have such a good relationship with each other and rapport and the thing that also throws you off, because I can't say I would be that person they want us to call him by their first name. Oh wow, isn't that odd? She's like just call me Sam, just call me Desiree, just call me Melissa.
Speaker 1:We can't call you Angela, we have to call you Dr. Momma Girl, let me be serious.
Speaker 2:my children are going to have to call me Dr Momma. But here's the reason. You can't call you Dr Angela. You can't, but you got to put Docs.
Speaker 1:You see how long.
Speaker 2:I've been working at this since 1988. It's been in my plan since I was in high school. I graduated in 1990. Oh yeah, exactly when you were born. Thank you, yachty, for bringing that to my head again.
Speaker 2:But part of it is because they said because you're almost there, yeah, so you're almost at our level, so why not refer to you that way? It's just the way they in that need. The way they they approach it is to treat me not quite as an equal, but to treat me with such respect as a student to know that, hey, just in a couple years that could be, we'll be calling you doctor too. Yeah, and so even when I was in one of my classes, we this particular class, I mean now we were doing a panel discussion and the professor who was my first professor she's now the professor of the last course I have and she referred to those who had already gotten approved by their panels and all that, for their dissertation. They're ready to walk the stage, everybody's doctor now. But she even said to me she said, in the future doctor, love Jackson. I appreciate it there so much because she is speaking a life and a reminder that girl, you're gonna get it. You might not get it right now, but you will get it for sure.
Speaker 2:So that's where we are, and I you know I can ramble on and on and on about Alverno trust me, and I will be making it to Milwaukee, wisconsin. I will be marching that stage and they all promise that they will be there for me and with me.
Speaker 1:I have a quick question about the school. So they just for those who are getting their doctorate, they help with bachelor's, master's.
Speaker 2:Oh, I'm so glad you asked me that, yanni. Here's the other thing with this program they've even during other classes they bring different people, it might I add, since I've been there. Last year the new president happens to look just like me and you. Oh really. She was the president of the Girl Scouts in Wisconsin and so she's shown her leadership skills and now she is the president of Alverno College. Alverno was founded, like in 1970, 1980.
Speaker 2:It is under normally a Catholic belief system starting off, so it is a private college. Those in Milwaukee know it quite well, some in Wisconsin know it quite well, and so there are people in my cohort and in other classes I've been in that had gotten their bachelor's and master's through Alverno. The other thing about them if you have set out this you won't hear in any other college or university that I've ever known, and I've been studying quite a few of them because that's one of my assignments with my students. Wherever you are in life, have you ever heard such a thing? They will let some of your life experiences work as part of your belief. I'm serious, shani. I told Christian. I said sweetheart, look, you've sat out for a minute with this associate's degree and you're ready to get your bachelor's.
Speaker 2:They will consider some of your music. You've been playing at churches, playing here. You've been learning on your own. They will consider some of that. They will consider some of your life experiences. How much it depends on what you've been doing. You dialogue with them and you just gotta write up what you've been doing like a, like a resume pretty much, and they are willing to accept something and I don't care if all they take is just one course worth Money wise, that's saving you a few thousand dollars, but there have been some that have received quite a few hours out of it.
Speaker 2:The other thing about them that's unique is this one through me, the teacher and me, their grading policy. First of all, it's not A's, b's, c's and D's First, god Okay, it's a four, three, two or one scale and from my experience I I don't want to tell you wrong whether it's bachelor's or masters will do this as well. But for sure the doctoral program, if you don't make that four or three, the professor talks to you, works with you to get that two or that one that you had to bring it up to a three or four so that you can make the grade. It's not that you got a zero dash F and we're moving on.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's been my experience because I've been into, I've been a part of a lot of online schools. Uh-huh, that's just part of my testimony. Yeah, and a lot of them are to where you pass or you fail, no matter what. It's very I probably maybe two, if even not the professor. They even care.
Speaker 2:And a total opposite experience, then that is. That's why I will give you the information for Albert.
Speaker 1:I don't even know.
Speaker 2:I sent you. I'm serious, I'm the number one ambassador because they work with you, they care that much about you. There have been times where I'm like y'all, I tell my advisor, I tell a professor, I've got a lot going on. This week I got this program I'm working on or it's grading time with me. Now there's semester schedule is different because it is a fast pace and that's with all their programs. It's a fast track and I'm in the black. Okay, can you believe that they say, okay, here's what you're doing, here's what we're doing, and because they want to see you succeed, that's when you say that other places don't care.
Speaker 2:I have felt that you could tell it was professors who are just trying to get tenure, or I'm retired and I'm just finishing out my years, and then, hey, I'm just working to where I might become a dean. I can't tell you any time. I've had an experience with any professor at this campus and I've had at least what? 10, I don't count. Let me see one, two, three, four, five, almost ten, if not ten or more. Not one of them did I feel like they didn't care. Not one of them did I not feel that I had their voice and I know the online system, this one. It's online but it's also a synchronous. It's gonna be some synchronous and some asynchronous. You won't hardly ever catch a course that you wouldn't have at least met with your professor once or twice visually. Even this course where it's designed for us to choose different things that we want to do to help us in our life outside.
Speaker 2:After this dissertation, after this doctor, after I graduate, look here's how you to do a VT, a resume for a college. Here's how you do a podcast. Here's how you do a web page. Here's what you do if you want to do a reading, or if you want to have a panel, or if you want to moderate, or if it's got so many varieties and we got to pick and even then she said modify it for you, just let me know, give my approval. That's how they do. Now, not every course is gonna be that way. Please don't be misled, but they listen to you.
Speaker 2:There have been times when I was working on my bachelor's, on my master's, and you know there was especially your bachelor's. There were two times you were gonna see every student, the first class and the last class. When you take your exams and they have the guy to come in to do the survey, the valuation. Everybody showed up on evaluation day, even some who might not come during final exam. Yeah, there has not been one time that I missed an evaluation because I wanted to give them a piece in my mind. Some were good, some were great, some were not so good, but every time I have a chance to give feedback at Alverno, I do.
Speaker 2:And here's the thing I know they listen. They've already talked about things that they changed based off what the students have said. Okay, because, again, this program is still new when you consider what some universities have been out there for hundreds of years, and so they. They listen to us, they get our thoughts, they get our opinions and so, with that, not only are they developing, looking at their strengths and even now analyzing their weaknesses, they've taught us, as students, how to analyze our strengths, how to assess ourselves and be mindful. Again, this is a leadership, educational leadership program, which is something you need to do in leadership. Oh, if some of my people I know and work with could go through some of the courses that I've seen and looked at some stuff that I have learned, it would help our educational system so much more, because it's one thing to be in a class taking these classes, but then what are you gonna do with it? And they have done that with us. They've sat down and said okay, you got a plan out I remember it was last spring or this summer course. What are you going? You've got to create a presentation and how you're gonna do it. And in that class I was with colleagues, peers, who were saying well, you know what, because of this I got to do this presentation and we're actually doing it. And here's the the benefit to it. At the same time this one man was presenting it. He's in the opera in Switzerland or Germany, oh wow. But he lives in New Mexico, but during certain season he goes and does that. So that's the benefit of this program.
Speaker 2:While I was in Washington DC, I was still in class. I've been in San Antonio, but even they work with you so much that my advisor, she works after scheduled. Now they are, they have a schedule too, and so they'll give you these options of when you can meet. But my advisor was my dissertation advisor. We meet during my my oh, what do we call it? Shoot, my planning period. Okay, it's for school At school, while I'm working, during my conference period we meet at a specific time and if I tell her, hey, I got a meeting, parent meeting or I have to do a meeting with school, I can't make it.
Speaker 2:Okay, angela, when can you best meet that kind of stuff? And that's what I have found in this program. Again, I told you I could sing their praises all the time, and it's not just because I need a good grade, because they have no problem looking past the bull, it's okay. Now we need you to do this. It sounds good, but put it here and is that realistic? And the other thing that I got from this program because I'm in West Texas, I've taught here for so many years, my family's here, I got exposed. That's the benefit. You know I'm out of state with this program and it's got people from all over the country.
Speaker 2:In my close cohort friends I've got two that live in Milwaukee and one of them works with men who are coming out of prison.
Speaker 2:Oh wow, and their education of how to get back in to society. Yeah, but it's education. Another one she is in. She's from Mexico, ended up in Milwaukee, graduated I think. She got her degree in Alverto, but she works in nursing and she is teaching students in nursing, oh, wow, so, but an advising, more so in an advisor to advisory program. Another one, he's in to her in California, and I'm just thinking of the ones who are in this group text right now, my dear friends. Okay, one of them. One of them who's in Milwaukee also, she works in the equity or ethnic diversity program in a different college or a different part, but not in Alverto, and two of them work in California, hundreds of miles away. One is more upper north California and she's working in like a school where people come from all students come from all over the world, mm-hmm, like a boarding school. She and her husband, both the teachers there, and she helps them in arts.
Speaker 2:Then a little bit of everything in the same cohort as a young man who's in his 20s still. He's the youngest of the group and in our group he's the only guy, but he works with alternative middle school program, where I mean, he's got this neck tattoo right on his throat and he's teaching middle school kids and doing stuff with their hands and woodworking or metalworking and stuff. I don't know exactly what Owen does. When it did you hear all that? I'm the only conventional educator. That is why. But we're all in the same group, yeah, and in that group I got somebody who's from Mexico, two African Americans plus me, that's three African Americans to two Anglos, and then there's one more.
Speaker 2:She's the super superintendent at a Native American reservation really a school there upper, and it's not in Milwaukee where she's. She was constant Idaho one of those up there, I think, idaho, but she works on a reservation as the superintendent of schools.
Speaker 1:Again, all of us from different walks of life yeah, and being able to be in that cohort and we come together.
Speaker 2:So I have learned so much from them and from this program. Different things I do in my class. I've learned how to do flip grids. I'd never heard of flip grids before but I turned started using it with my students because, especially my dual credit kids, because I want them to be able to leave my class wherever they go off to school, not let, the first time you hear about a flip grid, be away from home, away from friends and everything else. No, you do a flip grid here, where your amongst people you've known since you were in pre-k.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've learned how to do a padlet. I never knew what a padlet was. I still have my mom said I like it and I don't. It's like a one-page brochure and I've done it a few times. I learned how to create a web page. I learned better research and so, going all the way back to where I started off, talking about my dissertation, the historian in me I got my masters in history, mm-hmm. So, as you can tell, I talk a lot, so I so write a lot, mm-hmm. They are helping me and I had to get out of it and there was problems. I even had when I was in it at Tech with my educational degree there, because I want to give you all these adjectives and tell you a whole story. I ain't got time for all that. I got to get to the point and I'm learning, so one of the first things that was hard for me to do was what they called the elevator speech, and so I hadn't even talked about what my topic is.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I was back in my next question so my dissertation topic is the education of at-risk African-American students in rural West Texas I'm coming back to where I am. I'm looking at the fact that we have a four to five percent depending on if we're in a boom then up to seven percent African-American population and so many times black kids are designated as at-risk. At risk can be defined as your socio-economics whether you have a parent who's been locked up, whether you are special ed or special needs as we call them nowadays. But I could even consider at risk because of where you live, your single parent household. So much of that if you've ever failed a state mandated test so many times.
Speaker 2:You look up, that's African-American students. How are we teaching them? Are we preparing anybody to teach them that particular group? Are we? What are we doing to teach our teachers how to teach them? What are we doing with the students? Because they're so apathetic at that group, but not only that. Their parents tend to be apathetic. Not everybody's gonna get a place on the NFL or to start get a D1 scholarship.
Speaker 2:Say that one more time not everyone who, even as a starter on the basketball team, is gonna get a D1 and your team might have made it to the state playoffs, the state tournament. It does not mean you are gonna get a D1 scholarship, and even if then it doesn't mean you're going to play for the NBA yet might not even make it to Australia. And I've taught those boys and I'm proud of those McCalla boys. I will call them out. They've played with the Harlem Globetrotters. Oh, wow, yes, but I Know how hard they worked. One of them was walking around school with a basketball all the time. He went from class to class with a basketball, yes, but even then they only made it to Juco. I Say that because my nephew, who was the salutatorian of his class, estacado in Lubbock and they went to state playoffs every year. He's six foot seven Only got a full ride to a Juco. Wow and hit and Texas Tech was his back door. His dual credit was Texas Tech.
Speaker 2:Yeah but he had to go the Juco way. So what are we doing for those kids right? How are we teaching them to pass a test? And do they really need to be special ed? What do we need to do with them? So those are some things that I've learned in the leadership program and Talking to my peers, finding out what are you doing in? What are y'all doing in Milwaukee? Well, what are y'all doing in Alabama? What are y'all doing in Houston? Because that's urban and I'm rural, that's so those urban. So you're looking at more kids in African-American. What are the programs you have?
Speaker 2:And in my research I found that oh, what state is it correct right now? This is my biggest fear when I get before my panel that I'm not gonna be able to remit. Remember these specifics. But it was pushed by the Commission of Education that all black students be considered at risk For the simple fact they're black. Wow, and his argument was Because of where they are. Oh, it was Detroit, duh, look at where Detroit is and what's going on there, they put. He had a very Pignant point. See whether that might have been exactly, but then it started making me really think.
Speaker 2:In West Texas, our kids don't have to deal with atrocities, so much of. But I still have to sit down with my son and talk to him about when a police officer, yeah, pulls you over and, son, one day a police officer will, do you know what to do? Do you understand to intend? Always drive with your wallet Right there in the seat and your ID on top and when the officer comes, first of all drive to a lighted area with other people, yeah, or drive directly to the police station and, on the way of your driving, call first of all 911 and tell them I'm being followed by this, by this car. I'm on the street, I'm not, I'm not avoiding, I'm just coming to you all for my safety, all right. And then the next call you make us to your mother, I Still have that phone.
Speaker 2:I still have that conversation with my son at ease 27, 26, 27,. You know. But he doesn't have to worry about it on a day-to-day right. He doesn't have to worry about that on a regular. But he's happened. It's happened a couple times and he knew what to do. But in a place like Detroit, yeah, you're at risk. My brother taught in an at-risk when he was a principal middle school at the time in Lubbock and a kid Got caught with the gun On his campus and he immediately put it in the vault. And they asked why did you turn them in? He said because before I do I want to talk to him.
Speaker 2:Yeah that's something that people aren't gonna always understood. Now. He turned it in, but he wanted to find out and investigate because it was such a good kid, mm-hmm, and this was middle school six, seventh, eighth grade. What are you doing? Walking to school with the gun. Are you trying to show it off? And he found out, mr Love, I have this gun because I have to walk through this particular area where all these drug dealers are, and I've seen them kill. I've seen relatives die, yeah, by gunshot, and I had to be ready, but I'm still coming to school, mr Love. They try to give me to join their games, but I've learned from you all that I need to be in school. Yeah, so although the child had to go to an alternative program, it changed the way the alternative program was going to do him and now my brother here's. Part of the other thing is he's no longer at the middle school.
Speaker 2:For several years now he's been the principal at the school prison, wow, and for him, he loves it. He said he could retire doing it because it, honestly, is the last Time some of these kids will have a chance before that pipeline to prison, yeah, as you hear so many times talked about. He can help with that pipeline. He could cut it, solder it off. Yeah, because he's had to take those students who, when they turn 18, he has to help the guards and officers deliver them tool to the state prison. But until they are that age. When he tells his teachers we are not wardens, yeah, we are teachers and I'm the principal. They got a warden on the other side. When they leave our classes they got officers, sometimes right there in class with them, some of them chained to the desk and some of them free, but they've got officers with with the necessary weapons. We're not that. We are here to teach these kids.
Speaker 2:So all of that coming into my life is why I chose that topic. And While I've been in the class Classes, class to class and talking to my peers and members of my cohort, it's solidified it. But it's not just that. One more and then I'm a shut up about it Is a lot of people know my husband's story and a lot of people don't. My husband was locked up for 17 years Now, months, and so many days he could take to work to a tee because he was gangish, but not in a gang, hmm, he was by his brother's bed as his brother was fighting cancer at night, helping his brother's wife With her two small children. Every night he was there at the foot of his bed Helping take care of him. So he missed a lot of school. And his father, who happened to be a classmate of my mother's really, oh yeah, that's how far back we go.
Speaker 2:So I didn't go looking for a prisoner to marry. Please understand that in the podcast. I had known my husband since we were kids so we were always friends. But he was by his brother's bedside and his father's will was always you either gonna go to school, you're gonna go get a job, because his dad got a GED. My, he says, my mother was a good student. He would. He just went till he could go work. And so he told his boys because he had three boys and then a dog, you're gonna go to school or you're gonna go to work.
Speaker 2:So my husband, my friend at the time, have been missing a lot of days and when his brother died he actually helped his dad physically pick him up and carry him into To Houston to go get treatments and ride back on the highway as he's puking and all that taking care of his brother, helping change his brother and all that kind of stuff. He's going through all of that. And the first day he returns to school he hears from three or four teachers plus a principal Jackson, where you're being? You missed a lot of school, you've been skipping. Nobody said are you okay? What's been going on? Nobody had called his home. Nobody had reached out to find out why is this student missing class? It might have had his mother work there on campus in the cafeteria and nobody had been going to her and said why is your son not in school, but your daughter is? Nobody had taken the time to do that. My future husband was at risk. Nobody got an SAS counselor. Nobody said you've lost your older brother, who was just 24, 25 years old. Nobody went to him. It said we got something. And might I add Johnny, it was his senior year in high school. He said that day he walked in the building In one door. And he said he walked in one door and walked out Again. No one stopped him, no one cared and he told his boss I could start working full-time. And that's what he did. That's some other stuff. Got him Caught up.
Speaker 2:He didn't tell and in the state of Texas, if you don't tell, they call it your fall partner. Oh, then you're considered An accomplice. He chose not to tell and that's why he got the time he got. But, yeah, knowing his story, even while I was at Texas Tech working on my bachelor's degree, knowing his story while I was working on my master's degree, mm-hmm, and knowing on his story. When I started on my doctorate program he would be getting out soon. We were still friends. It changed some point in there, but he helped push me to start back on this doctorate program. You, they're not gonna say I'm the reason why you didn't get it, and so he's pushed me even throughout this to continue. But I just His life. His story was part of the reason why I started being concerned about African-American at risk students and it goes back to that law degree and why I chose education so my question is with All this extra knowledge you have, what advice would you give a?
Speaker 1:We're gonna make it personal. What advice would you give a? What is it ECISD? I'm like what is it again? Ecisd teacher who may not be black, um, but has a, you know, african-american student in their class.
Speaker 2:Well glad you asked one of the things I looked at in my research. There was somebody who had done a dissertation on it in California, white women teaching black males. Mm-hmm, you can't make yourself black.
Speaker 2:No, please don't even try please don't, don't try to go up to him talking slang. Yeah, don't go, try to do. Don't try to do all that, but go familiarize yourself With that student first of all. I don't see them for their blackness. See them for their being a student. See them as an opportunity for somebody for you to teach. Number one two, when approaching that student Know them, know their family, get to know them. Um, ecisd is real good on this about pushing us to make parent contacts. In fact, we're not supposed to, at least on the campus of Permian. We're not supposed to allow students to fail our class. For six weeks we hadn't made at least two phone phone calls or parent contacts. Here's the problem with that. That goes back to when I told you that apathy. So many times parents have blocked ECISD phone calls because they get tired of all the phone calls. They say, um, and so ECISD tried something different. We had school status that sends alerts. They started blocking that and in fact.
Speaker 2:In fact, we used to have to register kids in person and you had to show yourself with the bill and you have to write in all this information and you'd have to bring it back Return sign. We don't do that anymore and we go online and fill out. It's so wonderful and helpful to a parent who's very busy, who's got five kids. Instead of going to five different schools or Three different times up to different campuses, they can fill it all out. But many parents Refuse to put contact information. Seriously, I can't imagine as a parent that I don't want somebody to be able to contact me in the event something happens with my child. You know.
Speaker 1:I, but that happens. I hear what you're saying about. The same time I just feel like I don't know. I think this is just the walk I'm on now, but I'm always wondering like why? So I guess my head goes to. Well, what's going on with the parent? Yes, is there a way we can maybe I know that does ecstasy do this to where, if it's just something where they don't put the contact information down or there's issues at home, is there something there to then I'm sure we can't fully step in but Supply some support to that parent. Yes, that way they can be a better parent, that way the student could be a better student ecstasy has several programs if an elementary.
Speaker 2:They even have programs like if a kid has missed so many or even Tried so much, because I'm guilty of that when Christian was a student. They send you a letter and tell you we have some parenting classes you can take really we can guide you.
Speaker 2:Yes, they have all those kind of programs out there. Um, on our campus we have what we call communities in school. Um, one of the people with that program, reverend Michael Smith, is one of the People that works there, and there's another lady and they, um, they will provide food. I've seen them cloth people. I've seen them have hygiene stuff. Hygiene yes, ma'am, right there they give you school supplies. I've seen them give girls prom dresses. Um, I've seen them put caps and gowns on kids. They pay for them. That was years ago but I was closer to the program then. Um, I've seen them get kids glasses. So the key is you got to be willing to ask.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know pride is always it's hard.
Speaker 2:And so I make it clear to every student I don't single a kid out that way, because you can't assume in this day and age your parent might be working for um, an oil company. A friend of mine on facebook just said today they told everybody to come in and they told everybody in that meeting Um, you are all being laid off today. Today, a friend of mine and, and so that happens at a day's notice in this area that we live in. And so you might have been a 75 to 150 thousand dollar home earner that day, but in six weeks, if you didn't save, you're at zero. So it changes the socioeconomic, and so you might have been driving abends, but that's because you paid for it, but you can't afford to put the gas in it. You know pride, um.
Speaker 2:But so what happens with my students? Every class, I make it clear If you can't afford the poster for this project, I've got the posters over here. And if you can't supply, can't afford the supplies, I've got them here. Just borrow them. Tell me after class, miss lj, don't steal them. So I know what happened to my stuff, miss lj. I'm borrowing these markers. I need these map colors because I didn't finish in class, and then I'm gonna take them home and I'll bring them back, and I always say how long are you gonna keep my stuff? If you tell me I'll bring them back tomorrow, then I expect them tomorrow, but if you tell me well, I got to work on babysitting or we got church, I don't know, I got a lot of other makeup work out I might not have them back till next Monday. Thank you, bring them back next Monday. Do you have a bag or something to put them in? Yeah, so those kind of things are there, but, again, I do that with every class. I make sure they're aware of communities in school. I also make sure they're aware of our student assistants, um, sas counselors. These are those counselors there for your emotion. We had a student who just passed away, um, and so they go around to every class that that student was in to be there for grief. They bring in grief counselors for them. So it's up to you, though and that becomes something as an adult.
Speaker 2:Even again, earlier question what do you do for your mind? We're providing it for you. Learn how to use those tools. So then, when you graduate, I'm not only teaching you about history, but I'm teaching you about other ways to find other problems that can help you as you go through life, because you do not have to go through life alone when I make my shit. Well and here's what I tell my kids you won't work alone. No, because they hate. Sometimes they hate working in groups. Some of them love it because they don't want to do the work, but some of them hate to work in it. Well, can I just work by myself? Sometimes you can, sometimes you can't, because there's not one job In this world that I can find that you can work alone.
Speaker 2:I don't care if you work from home. You need somebody to be filling out the paycheck that's going to be mailed or put into your, your account. If you're a truck driver, you even need somebody who's going to load your truck and unload it, and if they don't load it properly, it could cause you to wreck and die on the highway. And so I tell them you need people. I teach them history, but I also teach them life lessons. Um, I teach them about college experience. Every first Wednesday of every month is college day, so we talk about my college experience. I talk about my bachelor's, my master's, and I even talk about my Doctorial program. I tell them, when you go get your bachelor's, 50 percent is what you're going to learn in that class, but the other 50 percent Is going to be from the connections you make. Don't just stay in your dorm room, I'm not telling you.
Speaker 2:Go to no frat and sorority parties, but join some clubs, even if you're not in athletics anymore. But you work. Go join the interim, permanent or how do you say? The sports leagues, intramural, that's it, intermural sports leagues. Um, go work out, because you're paying for all of. You're paying for every time they change out the flowers, every time they put the lights, like I told you I was at tech. You're paying for every time they cover the pool when it gets cold and when they uncover it comes springtime. You're paying for every weight In that workout room. You're paying for that teacher that's teaching the zumba class. So you might as well go and join them. Yeah, go to the medical people, because you're paying for them too.
Speaker 1:Go see the therapist.
Speaker 2:What you did go see the therapists, because all of them are provided, and I tell them those parts of my class as well. We talk about financial aid. We talk about, um the difference in FAFSA and those loans. We talk about scholarships and we talk about um the difference in a scholarship and a grant compared to a loan. And so we we do all of that and um, that's what I teach my kids. So in leadership, what I would go back to telling that um, teacher, teacher, tell a student all that you would a white student, all that you would an hispanic student. But then when it's an opportunity, let them find themselves in your lesson.
Speaker 2:Um, math for christian is so different when he was going through elementary compared to when I was. Yeah, when I was elementary was dig, jane, we're running um, and sally and su. But then I started looking at christian's math assignments and his word problems hakeem and hasus, we're running up the hill. Yanni, you're young enough that's probably starting to change it for you. I didn't get that. So they started realizing in education that we needed to be more culturally aware. But it's more than you just saying Hakim and Jesus Get to know when Hakim says I'm not doing Christmas, miss, you can't force me to do a Christmas sweater decoration for a grade, which is what my daughter is doing right now. Why can't I For one? Because we might be Jehovah's Witness. We don't believe it, we don't celebrate those, or it might be instead, miss, can we talk about Kwanzaa? Because my family, because I've got African students that is true too. My daughter was doing the Thanksgiving turkey we decorated. You saw it when you first got here. Well, I got Vietnamese students. They ain't celebrating Thanksgiving, they just know they're not going to school. Some of them are not here long enough because we've made them part of our culture. But then I asked them what are you going to have for your Thanksgiving meal? It's that simple. That teacher could simply say what are you all going to have for your Thanksgiving meal? What do you have for your Christmas dinner? We're having ham and we're having duckling at mine. Oh really, we're having ribs at mine. Miss, miss, we're having tamales. That cracks me up.
Speaker 2:I had a co-worker years ago because they were ignorant, ignorant, and there's nothing wrong with being ignorant, as long as you don't stay ignorant, because if you stay ignorant then you become stupid. And she asked us in a faculty lab. She said y'all, I got to ask somebody you Mexicans and of course, you got to know how to word stuff. So let me say it this way she wasn't the most culturally aware, but she was trying. She said I need to ask you Mexicans about this.
Speaker 2:My students told me that y'all only have tamales for Christmas because those are the only things you wrap. Is that true? If y'all don't wrap presents, instead you wrap tamales. And the teachers just shook their head. He said, okay, y'all, it's time for us to teach and I won't say her name A little bit about Mexican culture. And then there would be times when we have to teach about African American culture. But she would take that back and she said okay, guys, y'all got me. This time I learned from my colleagues. No, it's not. But then it was not only her getting to know her colleagues, it was a joke to the kids. They laughed about it.
Speaker 2:But then the next year she said okay, I know y'all are wrapping more than tamales. And don't get me on this and don't sound, don't try to overcompensate by saying because my Mexican students, no, say, because I had previous students last year who got me. Be real and be sincere. That's what I would tell somebody Be real, be sincere. And then here's the other thing. Go to what the kids were involved in.
Speaker 2:If I don't go to football games, hardly, I got tired of them for one, because I was in band all those years. We were going to state and that was y'all. But I started looking in the stands at the basketball games. We have thousands of people here Stand in the basketball. We have a lot of room and typically not stereotypically, but typically the basketball team is full of black males. That's true, and I even told an ECISD employee he's no longer with us there, I mean, he's moved to other somewhere else in the country but I told him, sir, you are in an upper position in ECISD. I'd like for our black men to see somebody that looks like them, that's not just a coach that is funny or just a custodian, because we hardly have any black males teaching. If so, they happen to be from Africa. I'd love for them to meet a black administrator that's at the administration building, coming in a suit if you have to, but you don't.
Speaker 1:They just come in.
Speaker 2:And so I was keeping score at the game. He said Miss La Jackson, I'm here. I said, good, come on down so the players can meet you. And so if the players see their teachers there, and how do they know? You ain't got to hollow over the rails like he did, but instead, hey, that was a good, that was a good shot. Third quarter, you were at my game. Yes, you know the difference. That student will start working for you. They see you at their stuff. I never worry about bad students working for me because they know I'm their biggest fan. I followed them all the way to the state competition last year.
Speaker 1:It's just funny you're saying all this. So I don't know if those who don't know, but Aaron started teaching seventh grade. So I'm hearing what you're saying and, with experience these last two months with him and hearing what he tells me and seeing what he does, I do know that, like last Saturday, if I'm correct I don't think it was Saturday One day last week he went and watched Nimitz. I don't know if it was the boys or girls, but he went and watched their basketball game, the A team and the B team.
Speaker 1:I think is what it was and I was like, oh okay, that's cool and I'm just knowing him. I know that he's taken that time to love on those kids and make those kids feel like they're the only kid in the classroom, as much as he possibly can.
Speaker 2:And that will make a connection and those kids will be better students. But here's the other part of it goes back to their parents will possibly be there. So then you say, hey, how do you know that's the parent by the way they're yelling. And when they finish yelling you realize, hey, I'm his student, I'm his teacher, I'm gonna tell him that one, I'm gonna stick that one up.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm his teacher, and don't start off negative and say, and I want you to know, I thank you. I love to get parents with this, thank you for the opportunity of teaching your child. Like what? Yeah, especially for dual credit, I can say that because you paid money for me to teach your child. Thank you for that opportunity. But I see it as an opportunity because I'm going to grow as a student and as a teacher, and as a student I do mean while I'm in college, but as a student of nature and of life, I'm going to learn from these kids. If nothing else, I watch them and I'm like I don't want you to act like that. I've learned certain things. I even see a girl with a hairstyle. Baby, what kind of jail do you use so I can tell my daughter that part? It puts a connection with them, like, oh, she's even paying attention. That little bitty thing you know.
Speaker 1:I think it is everything you're saying just comes back to the idea that kids have feelings. They do, and I've always thought I'm not that I'm a parent at all, Been around a bunch of kids but I just feel like sometimes we forget as adults that kids have feelings. They want to be heard, they want to be seen and they want to be loved. And a lot of times I feel like we spend a lot of times barking orders at them and not giving them a chance to explain. And I get it. You know, my mom is always telling me I do it because I said to do it. Cool, but listen to that child because she might actually be telling her, he may be telling you something that you know maybe can make it a little bit easier.
Speaker 2:And I had that issue with Jizayah. Sometimes, yeah, well, what are the? Because I said so? Because there's. Sometimes it's because I said so, yeah, I agree. But then I do try to listen. I know I listen sometimes more than I was heard. Yeah, as a child, because things were different when I was growing up. As opposed to when Jizayah's grown up, she's exposed to so much more just with social media. She's at the Boys and Girls Club. She's got different friends that are exposed to different things, so she's bringing what she's heard home. Some shows we watched that I would never would have watched as a kid, but she's watching them right there beside me. Because I want to explain it, I want to give it to her from my perspective, instead of what somebody else tells her.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but it goes back to the idea of like. I feel like what you just said was things are different now versus when I was growing up. I feel like there's that gap of people. Yeah, because there's a disconnect.
Speaker 2:There is a disconnect. Femaw is real in these schools. Oh gosh, yes, and it looks like a highlighter. Yeah, or Skittles. I had a colleague he said last year year before which I didn't know his classroom was directly above me. Seattle Paramedics had a come and get a kid because she nearly died. I'm like you got to be kidding. So it's real, and so I've got to express that with my child. So, going back, what would I tell a teacher for one? Through my dissertation, I just realized, if I teach every child and treat them like they're at risk, they no longer would be at risk. And I realized, though, for some kids, it's harder for them to learn. It's harder for a black kid, because even in 2023, I got kids sitting in my class that are black. I said, miss, you know, you're the first black teacher I've ever had.
Speaker 1:That part.
Speaker 2:I'm teaching 11th grade Now. You can't require it if you don't have people willing to go into education that are black. Now do I tell them to go into education? Nowadays it's hard. It's hard because things have changed so much. But my daughter had one and I insisted upon it. I knew it and guess what? She's not even there teaching anymore. She's still in the school system but she's not teaching anymore. Oh, wow, she's a teacher Shayray, really. Yeah, but she was an outstanding teacher and I understand why.
Speaker 2:Probably pay. I don't get into a business like that, but I know what she's doing is probably better pay, if not the time and efforts it goes into teaching. People think we get summers off. No, we don't. First of all, I get a check for the year and they break it up into 12 months and so, according to the 12 months, that's when I get paid each month. But for instance, I'm going to get one of those payments right before Christmas. I won't get paid again till January 31st, that's six weeks until I get a paycheck. A teacher is going to have to take care of their family, having not been paid for six weeks.
Speaker 2:Every teacher I know has a side hustle, a side stipend, whether they're doing something else on that campus, whether they're doing D-Haul, whether they're tutoring and getting paid a little extra for that, whether they're a coach, or many of them who are working at Lowell's hardware or who are working. I play for a church and two churches. We have to work those extra jobs just to make ends meet. That makes it hard. So tell a teacher now I need you to go, pay attention to every student, especially the black kids, and make sure that you are connecting with them. Now you don't have to go to their houses anymore. But if you want to see success, that's what I would tell a teacher. It's hard. Let them see you at the games. Let them see you not only at the games, grading papers, but actually be there hollering for them. Tell them good job, you're doing great. Or learn something about basketball.
Speaker 2:And for one, I had a former colleague who moved to San Antonio. He came from North Dakota. Why did he end up in Odell City? He said he was just looking for a change. I said well, baby, you found it here. But he since moved to San Antonio, got married, teaching, has a child. He was fresh out of college and I was his mentor.
Speaker 2:Well, I had some kids who were on the hockey team. I ain't done nothing about no hockey. I've watched hockey a couple times on TV Like oh okay, and then it loses my interest. But the moment I told him, I said you got to find a way to connect with those kids and so what I would use as analogies? He started using the hockey analogies and the three kids he had in his class, who he didn't know at the time were hockey players on the local team, started changing for him. He said miss, miss, love, because at the time I was still not love Jackson. He said you will never believe this.
Speaker 2:I started talking hockey and these boys started perking up and giving me their attention. I said are they hockey players? He said yes. I said you won't ever have enough of the problem out of him. Now the girl said well, I'm not in hockey, I'm in this. He said I guess I got to go to these games too. I said exactly. But it's hard when you've got a family, when you've got kids and you're working a side job. So I do something in my class because my health, I just can't go to everything anymore Every first day of the week. It takes a lot of time and I have to structure my class. Every class, we do what we call shout outs and celebrations.
Speaker 2:We got a song, go, shout out celebrations, shout out celebrations, shout out celebrations. I even have one class that does a wave with it, like there in the stands. We call it a wave of excitement. Tell me something great that happened. Are you in golf? Okay, tell me how I went. How did you golf match? Tell me how tennis went? Are you playing doubles or singles? I know that much about the sport.
Speaker 2:Swimming, are you diving or are you doing this? You know? Oh, you're in gymnastics. What are you doing in gymnastics? Are you doing the pommel horse? Are you on the floor? How did you do? How did you score? We do that. I can't do anything. We're at least going to sing Happy Birthday to you that day, if you had a birthday last week, and then we'll say, okay, if we didn't have any school, shout outs. If we have any academic, do we have any academic? Do we have any fine arts? We do it that way. So we'll shout out that kids had region band and I had several percussionists, did well, had some kids who just made all state choir, so we're going to celebrate that. But then those kids who weren't in anything, anybody get a raise on their job. Anybody just get a job. Hey, that's something to celebrate. What are you doing with junk about? Did you buy, not go to jail? You know, and I say jokely, it's not professional, but for some kids it's real, it's a good deal.
Speaker 2:For some kids it's real. You know, did anybody just have a day off? And you were excited? And it's one kid. I got employed the month and we shouted out and celebrated just like the kid who scored the winning shot at a basketball game. We'll give him one clap, two claps, We'll give him applause. Those kind of things, that kind of investment in those kids, letting them know I care, they check on me, being they're like well, if I wasn't in class on Monday, miss, why weren't you in class yesterday? Baby, it's none of your business. So I have a question though, do you?
Speaker 1:is there another colleague that teaches the same thing?
Speaker 2:you do. I am the only US history dual credit on campus Right now. It's been for years because you have to have a master's degree in history. You can have a master's degree, but if it's not in history then you can't teach it. But there are several. We have a PLC group that teaches US history. It's seven of us. One has more special ed kids special unit I mean not unit, but those students. Then there's somebody who teaches more English, has a second language, and then we got AP as well. There's two who are teaching AP this year, and I've taught that and then. So I'm the only one, though, that teaches dual credit US history.
Speaker 1:I'm just curious if the investment that you're putting in those kids is paying off in their grades.
Speaker 2:I think it does. It pays off in their future? No for sure. The very first assignment I give my students, all classes has to do the name assignment, Because I tell them you need to know why your parents named you, what they named you, Because that's the beginning of your history and I think that's the strangest thing and I find it hilarious that they've made it to 11th grade and you don't know why your parents named you.
Speaker 1:Yanni, but my story I would have been like my mom named me Yanni because it's a guy who plays the piano.
Speaker 2:But you now know, pianist Is that right.
Speaker 1:What's the correct way of saying that?
Speaker 2:Pianist, ok, but then there are some kids they don't know. You mean to tell me you're named junior and there were two boys before you. How do you get junior Exactly? Why are you junior? That's important to me.
Speaker 2:But then for my dual credit, the same day they get that assignment, they get a college comparison assignment. It's dual versus AP is what it started off, because I don't want them sitting in my class and they don't even accept their dual credit classes. I love you, I appreciate the extra funding I'm going to get come Christmas time for you, but if you're not going to go to a university that will take your dual credit, why are you here? You need to stay on the AP. So they have to look up every required AP, the AP required score, because it changes.
Speaker 2:Texas Tech for US history requires a three to count as a semester, whereas UT, for one semester, has to be a four on that score. A four at Texas Tech will get you two semesters, but you'd have to have a perfect five to get it. And then what is it at Harvard? And so that's one of the first questions. The second is will they accept your dual credit US history? They have to contact them and investigate. They also have to ask one of the things that it has to be college or university that's in state, one that's out of state, one that's in HBCU. So for some of them that's the first time they hear about it at HBCU. That's a whole other topic too. Historically Black College or University and I explained to some of my Anglo kids you have a better chance of a scholarship at that program than some others.
Speaker 1:Because, they have a lot of money just sitting, because nobody ever wants to go to them, right.
Speaker 2:And then the other part of it is they have to do in a state, they have to do private, they have to do public because some private universities won't take a dual credit but some will.
Speaker 2:And here's the other thing. I'll tell them the benefit of being in OC compared to other schools, because of the level of appreciation well, because of Odessa College throughout the country, how high ranking they are. They will accept your dual credit when they won't even accept somebody who got dual credit at a school in Houston, because they can only go, maybe, to the University of Houston, but they won't transfer to Texas Tech. So I tell the kids the benefit of that. So make sure you understand. And then the last thing they also have to do one that's international, because I have students who have come from out this country and you need to know if you decide to go back to where you were born and raised, will this class transfer? Because, again, why are you taking it? If you want the last one, I added for the past two years also Alverno, because that's where I go.
Speaker 2:Look that up to me oh, and they have to do YouTube to be. Why not check out? I don't plan on ever going to YouTube because it's here, but, baby, you need to know you are down the street. Yeah, if push came to shove, you need to know. Will YouTube accept your dual credit classes? And so it's really helped. It helps students in their future, in their planning, because as juniors, you should automatically be planning out where you're going to go to school. And so then the next thing I tell them, with all these schools, it's normally teen. They have to send letters or seek out their entrance people and ask about information on their program, and so some have done that and it's helped a lot.
Speaker 1:I bet.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they can't stand this. I'm not the beginning. I tell them trust me, let this be. And it might be a college university. Oh, and the way to keep them from cheating, they have to give me two colleges, and some of them can be more than one. So it could be an HBCU. It could also be a private, but it also could be, because one of them has to be your first initial and the other one has to be your last initial. That way, ha, baby, you're not looking up every school that I'm looking up Because you're Yanni Jones. So you might choose Jarvis, because that's a private HBCU and it's in state and it's your last initial. But then you might also choose Yale, oh, because they also have to look up Ivy League, because some of them are the top 10. So you might choose Yale. It's out of state, it's an Ivy League. Your name is Yanni, ok, that is hilarious. So that's why I make it unique.
Speaker 2:And they got to give me the insignia. And they understand the importance of the insignia, even more so Because that's some of the what's an insignia? Baby, at this point you need to know the time of insignia. Let's look up what's primary insignia. You know that kind of stuff. Yeah Well, I know I have talked so much, probably more than you needed.
Speaker 1:No, you're fine. I just say thank you for calling with the opportunity to learn more about this and to have the conversation to expose others listening to some of the barriers that people may face when getting their education.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and for anybody trying to get their doctoral, if you're interested in Alverno or just. I think I'm pretty good. I've done it long enough helping students get into college. I write great recommendation letters. I tell them I'm not just going to write it, but you know, I got to know you. But they can reach me at 432-349-5803. I don't mind giving that number out. Or my email is aloveaka At aolcom.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm still aol. I was getting ready to say not aol, I am still me and your aunt are still aol. I'm going to be with them until. But they can. Hi, the dogs have been let in, y'all. They let you know that we're almost done. But you're good, christian, come on in. Yeah, you're fine, they can reach me at those two ways. They can contact you and you can reach out to me For sure, because I don't want it to go past.
Speaker 2:I want it to be able this podcast in doing it, to be able to reach somebody who needs help and even if it's because your child is African-American or they're at risk, they're here in rural West Texas Just to guide you of different platforms that are out there available for you. There are different programs that can help students. That again, you've got to be willing to know and if you don't reach out, some people are going to reach for you. You've got to reach out, but I believe I'm standing on the shoulders of my ancestors and the responsibility is to reach down and pull somebody up, even higher.
Speaker 1:That's sweet. Well, the last thing that is a tradition here for this podcast is we like to have the guests pray us out. Well, hey, so if you don't mind, doing the honors and praying us out?
Speaker 2:I will. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day. We thank you for this opportunity to speak to each other, to build on the relationship I have with Yanni, Also to be able to reach out to the minds and the souls of people who this podcast will reach out to. I ask, Lord, that the words and things that have been said and shared will help somebody help a little further. Help Yanni as she continues to do this endeavor. Lord, I pray blessings on Yanni on this experience. I pray blessings on Yanni as she works towards this podcast, reaching for people, family and friends. And then, Lord, if there is somebody out there who just needs help, allow them to be bold enough and courageous enough to reach out for help in whatever type of help they need. As we go into this holiday season, Lord, give them comfort, Give them strength where they need, Allow them to realize that you truly are the present and you don't have to be unwrapped. We thank you for everything and we thank you for anything that comes our way. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen.
Speaker 1:Amen, Once again, thank you for having me. Thank you.
Speaker 2:Yanni, I love this. No, no problem, you can come by anytime. You know I love to talk and gab. If I don't start my own podcast, then you'll be one of the first ones I interview. I'm ready. I'm ready to go on the first topic. Yanni, why did you have a podcast?
Speaker 1:Yes, you know, my aunt said she wants to. This is a sign, though she's ready to interview me, and I was like OK, but anyway, thank you for those who have listened.
Speaker 2:Thank you for those who listened to the whole thing, because I know I will weigh over Yanni's time. I already warned her I talk a lot. Y'all know that You're fine.
Speaker 1:I just pray for those that are listening to remember that you guys are loved, You're needed. Someone in your community needs to either see your face or hear your testimony and then just to remember that it's OK sometimes Well it's OK.
Speaker 1:Not sometimes it's OK, but you try and need to be made in life, make the U-turn and get in line with the purpose that the Lord has for you. And if you don't know what it is, I just pray that you just start with a conversation with Him. Pray to Him, listen to Him, put yourself in His presence and allow Him to show you exactly where you're supposed to be.
Speaker 2:I agree. So before you sign off, yanni, I need to give you some accolades. I am so proud of you and how involved you are in this community. You're not born and raised here. You got family here, but you didn't have to be here long to get involved in the community and it makes a difference. It just goes to show you don't have to be born and raised to be seen. You're part of the Odessa Chamber and the young professionals. You're with the Black Culture Council of Odessa. You're on the YouTube EBCampus Guess what? I see? You Thank you, and that says a lot Because you stand out amongst many and I'm proud of you. I'm getting to know you and your walk in Christ. That's even better. You look good in pink, right?
Speaker 1:now Better be even brighter. On that note, we're going to say, ok, yeah, goodbye, y'all Bye, you don't even get the date. But it's all about sex and internals and through this sometimes we don't have time, so are we all at the same time? Right now, I'm accidentally walking away in a vacuum bin. So finally, thailand is probably corn. I mean, we're here, we're enjoying our 7 days in合作. Right now, we're all here at the lol you