Life coaching program at Anderson High School draws praise

ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) - As soon as Anderson Community Schools Superintendent Terry Thompson became principal at Anderson High School a few years ago, he couldn't help but notice the high number of suspensions and expulsions among African-American male students.

He vowed to change the way the school disciplined at-risk students, recognizing that time away from classes likely hurt more than it helped any behavioral issues.

"It was a drastic change because we weren't just going to put people on the street," Thompson said.

But even as he committed to keeping challenged students in class, the issues that prevented students from taking full advantage of their educations still needed to be addressed, Thompson said.

That's when he turned to the idea of hiring life coaches, a concept he borrowed from Indianapolis Public Schools and his own time working for the Metropolitan School District of Perry Township in Marion County. Life coaches work with students and their families to remove the barriers to student success.

"We have kids who have terrible home lives, but we can make every day a new start," he said.

In a quest for male role models who were well known in Anderson's black community, Thompson approached Maurice "Kojak" Fuller and the Rev. Samuel Jackson to become life coaches starting with the 2015-16 school year. Fuller is assigned to Anderson High School, and Jackson is assigned to Highland Middle School.

"We knew we'd have some great candidates within the community," he said.

Indiana's 1993 Mr. Basketball, Fuller admitted he had a troubled past after graduating from AHS. That included spending more than seven years in prison for dealing crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of the high school from which he graduated.

But that experience, and being a father of three by the time he was a senior in high school, means he has a first-hand understanding of the challenges, temptations and consequences faced by the youth who fill AHS's classrooms. That gives him credibility with the students, he said.

"It's a great tool," he said. "I'm so thankful because of where I've been."

Having been there also means he recognizes when students need help. More often than not, students won't ask for help because of a fear they will lose cool points, Fuller said.

"I love kids, and I had a passion to give them something I didn't have," he said. "Kids are the greatest pretenders. They act like they know when they don't."

As popular as he is with the students, Fuller said he and his suggestions also are accepted by the parents.

"They're very receptive to me, and they are open to receiving the option of dealing with their child," he said. "There's not a parent who doesn't allow me to put their child in check."

Jackson, who also has deep roots in the community, said his mantra for dealing with the students is "Catch up, keep up, move up".

"What I find is really huge is the children need to be affirmed - and that across the board, the child of the lawyer or the single mother," he said. "The essence really is helping them tap into who they are."

Students don't always respond immediately to his and Fuller's efforts, Jackson noted. Sometimes, they need to be redirected as many as six or seven times.

"For some, the only structure they may have is in the classroom with the teachers," he said.

Though the life coaches are paid only for the time they work during the 10-month school year, Jackson said their commitment extends far beyond the school day. For instance, he promised to take a student fishing and made good on that promise in July.

"This is about the children and following up with them," he said. "So often, they are promised things by adults who don't come through. That broken promise may be just the thing that sends that child over the edge."

Highland Principal David Tijerina said he can see the difference in his high-risk students after only one year.

For instance, the school had 849 parents at its open house. That's nearly unheard of for a middle school, because that's a time when parents perceive they don't have to be as involved as they were when their student was in elementary school.

"There are these young guys who carry weapons and are so tough, but I see them sobbing in Pastor Jackson's office," Tijerina said. "We want to exhaust every avenue at home as well as at school. We want to keep you from getting to the dean."

A measurable difference

Anderson Community Schools Superintendent Terry Thompson said the district already has seen a measurable return on investment by hiring Kojak Fuller and the Rev. Samuel Jackson as life coaches.

"If someone tells me in this community relationships don't work, they're going to have to show me statistically," Thompson said.

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The (Anderson) Herald-Bulletin, http://bit.ly/2bhJpqz

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Information from: The Herald Bulletin, http://www.theheraldbulletin.com