Surge Institute Alum Kristin Green-Hayes (PHILA25) shares why representation in the classroom is the foundation of Black and Brown student achievement, and what Teacher Appreciation Week truly asks us to honor.
There is a moment, quiet and easy to miss, when a child looks up and recognizes something in the person at the front of the room. A face. A familiar way of standing, speaking, and laughing when the class gets something right. At that moment, a ceiling lifts.
As a school teacher in Philadelphia, Kristin Green-Hayes has witnessed that moment. He has been that moment. A proud alum of Surge Academy Philadelphia (PHILA25), he is one voice in a growing chorus of Black and Brown educators who know the impact of representation in the classroom.
In this Q&A, Kristin gives a glimpse into his journey as a teacher and the role Surge has played in this latest chapter of his 15-year career.
When did you know you wanted to be a teacher?
During my freshman year of college, working at Jumpstart, I had an opportunity to work with a young man in pre-K, and he learned how to spell his name. He and his mother were so excited. It felt like I taught them alchemy, you know? I thought, ‘Oh, I like that.’ All I did was show up consistently and care. That’s what a good educator does, right? Showing up, being present, being consistent, and doing hard work. The seed was planted in undergrad.
Why is it important for teachers to have a sense of calling?
I think it’s important for teachers to be called, because being book smart is just not enough. This is hard work. It is a decision that requires passion to be effective. Oftentimes, people say that teachers are lifelong learners. I think that is the best part. Yes, you’ve learned all these things in undergrad, or in a program or certification or whatever else.
But what are you doing now? I believe once you start to learn about children: their styles, their strengths, weaknesses, structures, routines, etc., you start to develop as a person. It teaches you to give yourself more grace. It teaches you to give children more grace while also maintaining a standard, pushing rigor, pushing critical thought, pushing respect, and inclusivity.
What are one or two things you want your students to leave the classroom with?
Pride and power. I want children to walk out of the classroom knowing that they know something, or that they’ve learned something, or that they’ve been liberated from something, or that a thought has been challenged. I think there is some level of confidence and courage that promotes or begets pride. It’s that I know who I am, or I know where I come from, or I know what I’m talking about when I speak.
The power part comes in with autonomy and agency, and deciding this is a space that I can invest in. This is something I can challenge and inquire about; I don’t have to accept anything that’s just being offered to me. I can actually analyze, and I can disagree and respectfully disagree because I have respect for who I am.
Would you talk about the importance of Black and Brown children being taught by Black and Brown educators?
It is imperative for people to see representations of themselves so they can see the potential in themselves. When they can see representation from a general population teacher to a specialist teacher to administration or counselors, it really opens up who they can be…
How has Surge informed your pedagogy?
When I first participated in Surge, honestly, I felt unqualified, because it seemed as though so many of my peers were principals, or administrators, or counselors, or executives, or something to that effect. At that time, it sounds low, but I felt like only being in the classroom put me at a deficit. In reflection, it actually put me in a different space, because most people don’t teach in classrooms for more than 3 to 5 years.
And so to reach the 15-year mark… when I was able to be affirmed in that with my Surge cohort, it did a number on my self-confidence, and how I believed I could add and contribute to a classroom or to a school space. And so, [Surge] definitely promoted confidence, and in turn, I would also say I’m leaning more into equitable justice.
Surge put a battery in my back, inspired me to be an example of that modern James Baldwin, Bayard Rustin type of energy. I’m going to advocate for equity because it’s what we deserve. I deserve, you deserve, and it is necessary. The Surge cohort really pushes that. Don’t settle. If you know that you can do something, do something.
When it comes to pedagogy, it was autonomy and being a change agent. Actually having agency.
How do healthy, thriving classrooms positively impact communities?
There are a number of ways. I seek to promote a lot of community relationships. When I’m meeting with children, I’m very into details. Oh, you got a haircut. Oh, you got your hair done. Oh, haven’t seen you in a while. You went on vacation. Always affirming something about them, and how they’re showing up. Also asking how’s your family doing? I know you have a little brother coming on or you have a brother or sister that’s in college or whatever the thing is, it just gives a little bit of investment into more than just the academic trajectory.
In turn, this allows them to say, okay, I can be a whole person. This person doesn’t only care about this one component about me. And so when they go into their own communities, they know that they can be whole. They don’t have to only be the educated one or they don’t have to be the one who plays sports or the one who is an entertainer. It’s kind of I can be all and then share that with someone.
And we might not have all things in common, but there might be a common truth or something that we can share. When it comes to my classroom or my classroom spaces or professional learning communities and how that translates to them, ultimately, it’s grounded in being connected and honest.
My Surge cohort is named Ubuntu, which is I am because we are. And I think that is evident in the scholars and the children and families that I work with. I am this because we are this. And so when they leave my space, they know that they can do all the things because we are.
Can you think of a specific example of how your calling has manifested success in the classroom with your students?
I mentioned the group of boys that I got to work with on improving their reading skills. I worked with them for three years. They went from being two years behind to two years ahead. I’m confident [their steady progress] was because I was consistent and I was showing up. I was saying, those scores don’t matter. They only matter so that you know where you are.
I asked them, “Now, what are we going to do about it?” I think some of them thought the books were too hard… that they had to read in a certain way. That was not true. And so I got to break down what that looked like. I made reading fun and we started to do a kind of book tasting… If you didn’t like this book, you can move on to another.
It was the Goldilocks rule, right? It’s not too easy. It’s not too hard. It’s just right. Those little nuances pull people in. The student learns that they can read one book and then another.
When you break down barriers in the classroom, challenge what the classroom is supposed to look like traditionally, I believe you open up the arms of real progress, real growth. It doesn’t have to be as formal. Pigeonholed. It allows a lot of what my job refers to as embangi. It’s a house without walls. This thing has structure, but it is not exclusive. Everybody gets to put in; everybody gets to have some contribution to this space.
Is there a teacher that’s been special for you?
Mr. Craig Dobson was the only Black facilitator I had in real life. He taught algebra for eighth graders at my elementary school. As I mentioned before, my school didn’t pay much attention to me.
Something about Mr. Dobson was captivating to me. I could see him redirecting his children, and all of the kids responded to him differently. He was also a coach… I received many foundational steps from Mr. Craig Dobson. This is for you. Thank you for setting me up. You put me in a great space when it came to language, relationships, maturity, professionalism, and good sound pedagogy. You set a standard to follow.
Sometimes, educators are content to let people meet the mark, or assume that if they’re behind, I just need to get you here. He didn’t settle there. He told us, ” Go above and beyond. Go as far as you can.”
What impact did completing Surge Academy have on you?
At the time, I was starting to become very burnt out with being in education and feeling like I was on an island. Once I got connected to Surge, there were so many people who, as I said, also wanted to be a part of the ‘Let’s get back to affirming and teaching Black and Brown children about being Black and Brown.’ And so being a part of Surge was like a homecoming, but in an educational space.
It was like a family reunion. And so I’m extremely grateful for what Surge has done. And now it is still pushing me. I’m currently taking a class at Temple, [getting] a grant-writing certification.
I think oftentimes Black teachers feel like there’s no money in this space. But it’s so valuable…. And so, I think Surge, again, it was that platform. It was that trampoline for me. It was the common thread. It was the coming home. It was a missing piece to my puzzle.
