Mr. Ayers is active in numerous church and community organizations; however, his first love is his fraternity Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He was initiated into the fraternity during March of 1970 at Central State University. He has been an active member of the KEL graduate chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity since 1975 and has held multiple offices. In 2005, he was selected by his Brothers for KEL’s highest award, ‘Alpha Man of the Year’. Last, but not least, he reveres his membership with the Pershing Rifles, a military fraternity, while enrolled in the Reserve Officers Training Command (ROTC) as a student at Central State University. Lawson: What inspired you to become an educator? Ayers: I was inspired to become an educator because of a friend of our family who tutored me after I was kept back and repeated the second grade. In 1956, racism was still very much a part of what we had to face on a daily basis, but since I was only seven years old at the time, I never thought about it and consequently did not understand how racism could impact me. That summer, Ms. Velma Elmore, also a graduate of Central State University, taught me to read by using phonics and she also helped me to learn math. The most impressive thing she did was not allowing me to believe that I wasn’t smart or less capable than others. My ego and self-esteem remained undamaged as a result of the sincere love she showed me. This inspired me to get my first degree in Elementary Education because I wanted to share what Ms. Elmore did for me with other African American youth. Lawson: What was your greatest teaching challenge as an educator in the District of Columbia and Charles County School Systems? Ayers: When I think about my greatest teaching challenge, I think it has to be that I always had to remind myself that I was being watched constantly, not only by my students, but also by my counterparts most of which were white teachers and administrators. In addition, 70% of the time my students were white in the two different high schools where I taught metal working, welding, home mechanics, engineering and finally technology education. I went to a predominantly African American high school in Washington D. C., then I attended Central State University, which is a HBCU institution (Historically Black College/University). Following graduation from Central State University, I returned to my old high school, as a teacher. I taught there for seven years, then went to a small fishing community in southern Maryland. This was significant because as an African American male, I was teaching in an environment where there was a lack of respect for African American professionals. I consider myself fortunate for the professional preparation I received at Central State University, and Bowie State University it really made a major difference for me regarding how I was received and respected by all of my students. This was made evident in 1988, when the student body voted me as the ‘Most Influential Educator’. Lawson: As a mentor to African American students, how do you measure success? Ayers: In order to measure the success of my mentees, I use something very simple to gauge success and that is basically whether or not they become good and responsible citizens. To that end, I am very proud to share that many of them are responsible husbands, fathers, engineers, government workers; three have become millionaires and two are high ranking officers in the military. Overall, I have directly influenced the lives of over 500 young African American males and only three, that I know of, ended up serving any jail time, while 95% received their high school diplomas. That statement alone is very significant when you consider that nationally, 80% of African American males in jail do not possess a high school diploma and 70% of those without a high school diploma end up in jail by age 35.
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