Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
The axiom, “Those who cannot do, teach,” missed the point, as far as Blake Nathan is concerned.
In fact, Nathan created the Educate Me Foundation on a wholly opposite premise: To mentor and encourage African-American students, high school and college, to pursue careers in education, especially as teachers—and to help existing black teachers find new opportunities.
All with one goal, Nathan said: “To increase the number of African-American teachers in classrooms where they would have a cultural connection. That dynamic makes a huge difference for black students.”
Nathan, 27, speaks from his own experience. Growing up outside of Atlanta, he said he had just three black teachers from kindergarten through 12th grade. An engineering major at historically black Tennessee State University, he said he had just five African-American professors.
Then, as a middle school teacher of engineering and technology, in Indianapolis, Nathan said he was the only black male teacher in his district.
“There are hundreds of thousands of (black) students who have the same story as me,” he told Urban News Service. “Having taught black students, I know how important it is for them to have someone who has been where they are, someone who can relate to them on a personal level and have that cultural competency with them. (To continue reading, please visit www.wssnews.com)
