‘I would choose to teach again’
Kenroy Russell expresses pride for shaping young minds in teaching career spanning 38 years
Published:Wednesday | May 15, 2024 | 12:08 AMRochelle Clayton/Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
Kenroy Russell has spent over 38 years moulding the young minds of children in Maldon, St James, and he has done so with pride.
Russell, who has since retired from the Maldon Primary School where he worked as a grade-five teacher before being promoted to principal, has still not found his way outside of the classroom. Since his retirement in 2017, he has been volunteering at the nearby Glaydes Kindergarten School where he teaches basic Spanish.
The retired teacher was one of 38 awardees at the recent Maroon Town Division's Inaugural Teachers' Luncheon which was held at the Maroon Town Sports Complex on Friday evening. The award ceremony was the first major project carried out by first-time People's National Party (PNP) Councillor Anthony Swaby.
Speaking to The Gleaner on the sidelines of Friday's event, Russell shared that he started working at Maldon Primary School in 1979 after completing his studies at Sam Sharpe Teachers' College in the parish.
Though he remained at the rural St James school for the entirety of his formal teaching career, Russell jokingly shared a story of when he thought about moving on to a secondary institution.
“Two weeks after I started working in that school, the principal came to me and asked if I wanted to stay another year and I promptly said 'no'. She asked me why, and I said 'they have too much rain and mosquitoes'.”
“She told me to not answer just yet and to think about it, then I asked her why she wanted me to stay another year. She said that for years she had been searching for a good grade-five teacher and she thinks she has found one.”
However, Russell said that he still went on to apply for a position at the then Green Island Secondary School in Hanover and was happy to have been called for an interview.
“And on the morning of the interview, I got up, thought about it and said, 'You know what? You are very ungrateful. Here you have a job being handed to you on a platter and there are so many of your batchmates who didn't have one and you are going to leave that to go down to Green Island? You are ungrateful'. And I felt ashamed.
“I did go to the interview, but I told them that I didn't want the job. I just came to tell them, and they were impressed too.
“I came back and told the principal that I was ready for the job, and she said that she knew I would have changed my mind. I stayed there until I was promoted to senior teacher and then I became principal,” he said proudly.
Russell told The Gleaner that while he has dedicated his life to teaching, he also wears two additional important hats. He is a justice of the peace and a minister of religion.
When asked to describe his teaching career, Russell said that his 38 years in the classroom have been “satisfying and rewarding”.
“Because of the students that came from my tutelage. I have doctors, nurses and I have an airplane pilot.
“Sometimes when I become awake at nights and I reflect on my career, I have to say, 'Thank you, Lord. I have done my best'. And if I was to be born and come again, I would choose to teach again.”
For his part, Councillor Swaby underscored the importance of expressing gratitude to the people in charge of moulding the minds of the younger generations.
“I am saying thanks with a lot of love to you teachers from all walks of life and I want to tell you today that we value and appreciate you,” he said.
“My teachers, you must understand that you are a priceless treasure. You leave such a lasting impact on numerous lives, and it is only fitting that we express our gratitude for your foundational work in the shaping of the minds of our future generations.”