Last week it was my great honor to be in attendance when USM professor, Dr. Andrea Wesley, was
honored at IHL's Black Educator of the Year Awards ceremony. It was a real treat because
she has distinguished herself here for her contribution to the university. Now Dr. Wesley,
tell me why you're such a role model to students. You've mentored students, why is that important?
It's important, in fact it's almost scary because of the responsibility that's there
for me and for anyone who seeks to be a mentor, because everyone's watching you and most importantly
you're in a position to truly shape the lives of students and the lives of whoever you're
dealing with; Whoever you mentoring. So I take it as a serious experience, and a very
serious responsibility. Talk about the importance of diversity in
the college experience. For college students, college is such a fantastic
leap from where they are. When I see students I think about how many new experiences they
will have. For the college student, for them, I think it's looking at what's different about
people and what's different about themselves. I think that diversity for the college student
means that they keep addressing this word- different, and realizing that different does
not mean good and different does not mean bad. Different means you opening yourself
up to listen, to explore and growth for yourself and growth for others. And you celebrate the
differences that exist. So for college students, diversity is important for their own personal
growth; as well as, their academic growth. That's very well said. You cite that parents
are very important as role models for children. Elaborate on that for us.
For parents, I think about my own. I look at the fact that from them I learned perseverance;
I learned doing a job and doing it well. I have visions of my mother watching us, and
then going back over the dishes we washed and putting them back on the rack. I look
at my father, how tenderly he taught the kids next door, as well as us, taught them how
to do pottery. Taught them how to do something different with their lives, and from my parents
I learned to understand people. To seek to understand people and to look for what's good
in people. And to attempt to always make life better for them and for myself with each interaction
I have with them. You were very fortunate. When one of your
students graduates, what are your hopes for them?
Key word, hope. I hope that they've changed from when they first set foot on the doors,
and walk within the doors of the university. I hope that they've opened themselves up to
being able to listen and to learn from others. I hope that they recognize how powerful a
position they are in and not only delivering knowledge, but also receiving the knowledge
that they will be getting from those they're dealing with. So my hopes for my students
is that they grow themselves, they recognize their shortcomings, but that they also know
the power that comes with what they can do with knowledge and departing that knowledge
to others. How can Southern Miss help make that happen?
Southern Miss helps and is always helping to make that happen because with each student,
the very fact that they can enter a college classroom, that they recognize that this is
different and this has the potential for making me a better person. Making me a person with
more passion, a person with more commitment to making a difference in the lives of not
just themselves, but the lives of the world as well. So I think Southern Miss does that
because it does challenge the student to think beyond themselves, and to know that there
are no boundaries, no restrictions to how far they can go.
Well said. Dr. Andrea Wesley. USM's Black History Month educator of the Year.