GREENSBORO, N.C. — Most students have had a special teacher that made a big impact on their lives. Two teachers at Washington Montessori Elementary School in Guilford County are making an impact both in the classroom and on the basketball court. Mr. Stacy Perkins and Mr. Gabriel Tolson serve as teachers and role models at the school.
Last Winter, both teachers coached the school’s basketball team as part of the YMCA League. This was outside of their teaching responsibilities as elementary school teachers. They practiced once a week with the students after school and games were played on Saturdays.
According to the National Teacher and Principal Survey, just 1.3% of public school teachers were Black men in 2020-2021. As Black male teachers, Principal Paul Travers said Mr. Perkins and Mr. Tolson are bringing representation to the education field. Travers said the trust the two have developed with their students, parents, and community is transforming the lives of many students. He said their involvement has brought hope to students who previously did not like school, but now love school because they are in Mr. Perkins’s or Mr. Tolson’s class.
WFMY News 2 Anchor Lauren Coleman caught up with the teachers to find out more about the impact they are making in the lives of students.
What is your role at the school?
Mr. Perkins: I’m a fourth-grade teacher and teach all subjects.
Mr. Tolson: I teach third grade and I also teach all subjects.
Beyond teaching, you both volunteer as basketball coaches with the YMCA league. How has that experience been working with the kids?
Mr. Perkins: Well, the experience is great. We had a pretty great season. We started off rough losing every game, but we won the last one and we saw that translate into the classroom of never giving up.”
Mr. Tolson: It was a lot of fun to push them to kind of force themselves to be a little bit harder on how well they do and how well they go into the practices leading up to the games so that way it translates up into the classroom. Preparing for tests, preparing for homework, and preparing for other classroom assignments.”
Working with the students both in and out of the classroom, how have you seen their reaction to school change?
Mr. Perkins: What I’ve seen in the classroom, their reaction has been very competitive in the classroom. They want to be the best student like they are the best on the court. They want to win and be successful.
Why is it so important to have male role models, specifically Black male role models in the school system?
Mr. Tolson: Well, I would say it’s good to be able to see yourself in that type of position as a little Black boy coming up in the school. To see someone who looks like you, same hair, the same sense of style, and the same shoes. I think that builds them up to say ok, maybe this could be something I could do, or maybe even something greater than just sports or rapping.
Mr. Perkins: Personally, I’ve never had a Black male teacher. I’ve always had good women teachers, however sometimes I just couldn’t relate to them, but having a young boy that can relate to me is cool. We have certain conversations I couldn’t have with my female teachers growing up.
Mr. Perkins and Mr. Tolson hope their story will encourage more Black males to enter the education field.