Moses Walker is a truth-teller, justice seeker, and numbers guy. He’s also a Communities In Schools board member. Featured in our upcoming CIS Connections newsletter—which is all about boys—Moses shares some of his thoughts on boys, education, and community. Here’s his response to a question you’ll only find here as we couldn’t include it in the newsletter due to space issues. Check out the rest of the story in the next issue of CIS Connections, coming soon!
Can you tell us a little about the kind of boy you once were? What or who helped shape you into the man you became?
Good question. Growing up I was always viewed as being bright. Even as a little child, I was given speeches to memorize for school and church programs. And if someone was given two verses to memorize, I was given four. There were high expectations for me. I benefited from my older cousins working with me and was well prepared when I got to school and was recognized by my teachers.
Moses Walker as a young boy.
The Douglass Community Association shaped me and my friends, friends like Chuck Warfield. We were the Children of Douglass. We went to nursery school there. We played sports, learned how to dance, and shoot pool. Remember, this was at a time when black educators were refused jobs in the Kalamazoo Public Schools so we were the beneficiaries of Douglass youth workers like Ms. Juanita Goodwin and Mr. John Caldwell. They ended up with distinguished careers—as teachers and principals and retiring from the Kalamazoo Public Schools.
While there were no black educators when I was in school—I attended Lincoln School from kindergarten through ninth grade and then [Kalamazoo] Central High from tenth through twelfth grade—I was recognized and encouraged by my teachers. Even though I was always on the academic track, I admit, I did not always apply myself. My high school advisor Mildred McConkey was quite instrumental in my development and pointed out that I didn’t always apply myself. In fact, she was the one who said, ‘He’s smart but lazy.’ And it was true! She helped me get ready to go to college and made recommendations since I wasn’t top of my class.
High school advisor Mildred McConkey (seated, bottom right).
I went to Western Michigan University, and then entered the military mid-stream. I experienced racism but it taught me a lot. Just being smart is not enough. There are a lot of smart people in the world. A lot of people have gifts. But that is not enough. What are you going to do with it? I’m not bitter about these negative experiences because they were one of the best things that happened to me. It was a wake up-shake up and the experiences got me on track. I returned to college, finished in two years, and then headed to graduate school at the School of Social Work at Wayne State University.
So yes, the encouragement and support I received throughout my schooling made me who I am but it was the negative experience of the military that brought everything home for me.
To find out what Moses thinks we need to do better as a community to equip our boys to become successful and fulfilled young men, and more, read the rest of our conversation in the latest issue of CIS Connections.
Tags: Chuck Warfield, CIS, Communities In Schools of Kalamazoo, Douglass Community Association, John Caldwell, journey to manhood, Juanita Goodwin, Mildred McConkey, Moses Walker, Wayne State University, Western Michigan University
