By Drs. Erik M. Hines, Donna Y. Ford, Edward C. Fletcher Jr., Tanya J. Middleton
Dr. Erik Hines
Hines: I grew up in a medium-sized city in the south that was mostly white, but also had a sizable percentage of Blacks, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and Dominicans. I have had Black teachers since preschool. In fact, I had Black teachers in kindergarten through elementary school, except for one of my classes in fourth grade. Reflecting back on my elementary education, I believe having Black teachers not only shaped my identity to have pride in being a Black American, but it also normalized having Black teachers as being a way of life. In other words, I erroneously thought students across the country had Black teachers. However in junior high school, it was a Black American school counselor that influenced my career trajectory into the counseling profession. He spent time with students, created after school programs, and encouraged us to do well academically as it would create career and financial opportunities. Also, he held multiple positions as a program director for a program focused on helping underrepresented students pursue postsecondary opportunities and he was a night school principal. When I got to community college and was doing my own career exploration, he was the first person I thought about and I pursued school counseling because it was a profession that gave me the opportunity to work with students around finding their calling (or career) in life.
Ford 
Dr. Donna Y. Ford
