Phone interview with Aaron Massey and Nicolette Varan, taken October 20, 2016
Aaron Massey began his college career unlike most. He knew exactly what he wanted to accomplish: open a school in St. Louis, MO. Aaron’s strong purpose began because his parents valued education. Growing up in East St. Louis among much poverty, however, he found himself falling out of the system early in his education career. Aaron’s father passed away while he was a sophomore in high school, and at that time, his mother was in and out of the hospital with cancer. Surviving with these tragedies during his formative years was difficult enough to deal with, until he met his high school mentor Carnetta Chalmers from Belleville West High School. Carnetta gave Aaron and his peers the feeling of responsibility they would feel in college. Aaron’s resilient determination pursued during his high school years and has proven true as we find him opening his first school in St. Louis, next year in 2017.
Aaron surrounded himself with people who he knew would help him succeed. To start, he formed strong relationships with his two sisters, who, as he mentioned, are “easily the smartest people he knows and are most determined.” His twin sister, Alia Harris, is a nurse manager who runs the floor at Barnes Jewish Hospital in East St. Louis. His older sister, Ashley Henderson, is a marketing manager for Spectrum Brands. Aaron remembers who he cheered him on the day he was accepted into the Urban Education Policy Program at Brown University where he was selected to be an Executive Scholar (A designation for only 10 graduate students).
As Aaron’s sisters valued education, he knew this is what would make him “free” to pursue his dream of learning and higher education. He enrolled in a nearby high school to pursue better opportunities. He was one of two African American students in the honors system. Aaron mentioned he “didn’t have to feel tough every day” at school, as education was more important than impressing his social circle. In fact, he recently spoke in a panel of young mentors, called “Interrupting Racism” at East Central College, where Aaron mentioned he was “so happy to be free.” To Aaron, “high school was one of the best times of my life.” He was on the basketball team, track team captain (And was track captain at IWU), he was Vice President of the French Club, the Prom King, dance choreographer, and he was even the lead in the play “A Raisin in the Sun.”
As a first year teacher, Aaron surrounded himself around “some of the funniest, most supportive people on the planet: Sean McGrath (Attorney), Evan Nogay (Attorney), and Marco Ramirez (Marketing Executive). They inspired him to work harder, think smarter, and be bold about what he believes in.
Aaron started his career at Illinois Wesleyan University with strong determination. He began by studying the idea “How do you start community in the community.” Debra Halperin from the Resource Center at Wesleyan provided seminars and classes which steered Aaron towards his focus on urban and community development projects, which included ten students from Illinois Wesleyan, each who headed up different projects. Aaron’s project, The West Side Development Task Force, was developed to focus on people who have a lot of resources but didn’t have the time to use their resources. Aaron focused on filling the role of a community organizer, “on a smaller scale”, connecting everyone on all levels. Aaron mentioned that he wanted to “create a sense of urgency” within the community, since he was developing this focus within the school semester. He was and his team were able to “successfully create a community garden on the West side of Bloomington that is still alive and well.”
“I waited 10 years until coming back home to make sure I was ready.” After undergrad, Aaron attended Brown University to further his passion of educational development. In the meantime, he expanded his network and strengthened his background in teaching.
First, he went to Baton Rouge, LA for Teach for America where he taught secondary mathematics. After graduate school, he moved to Chicago to work with Nikki Grier as a Dean of Instruction. The school that he first taught at in Baton Rouge had closed sue to low performance. He was called down to Baton Rouge as the Founding Academy Director to open the school back up with new leadership. Aaron was able to recruit 172 kids to his school. At the time, the Principal of this school moved to Memphis, and Aaron was asked to become Dean of Students. He was able to prove himself by keeping expectations and getting results quickly. As he had worked with high impact from day one, he was able to provide his deliverables and became very confident in his role. Aaron, along with his strong background, network and drive, allowed him to open EAGLE College Prep.
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At E.A.G.L.E College Prep (Expecting Academic Greatness with a Loving Emphasis), Aaron felt moved to set a good cultural expectation within three months by switching the concept most school had: replacing a stern atmosphere with tough love and productivity. Aaron’s unique approach to education is what most institutions should strive towards. Aaron’s vision couldn’t happen without the help of his strong network and supporters. Seeking help, Aaron was able to gain support from individual donors, non-profits, and corporations around the country.
Currently, Aaron keeps himself organized by tackling objectives one month at a time:
November 2016: Aaron is out and about, introducing himself to people and receiving applications for the school
December 2016: Aaron is recruiting faculty (four more to hire)
January 2017: Aaron is checking enrollment numbers, looking at the curriculum, working on building and office improvements, and organizing faculty location
February/March 2017: Aaron is refining everything, enrolling the remainder of students (they hope to be fully staffed and enrolled by then)
April/May 2017: Everything should be up and operating, and Aaron is hoping he will get the support of the community as they see everything is up and running.