In this episode, we listen to interviews with a former AVID student, Tasha Henderson, and her former AVID teacher, Ben Solomon. Tasha has since earned both undergraduate and graduate degrees on her way to becoming a Television Writer and Producer. Ben, who now works as the Manager of Learning Programs, Products, and Services at AVID Center, looks back on his years teaching Tasha in the AVID classroom. This unique juxtaposition of student and teacher stories offers a unique look into the educational experience and the relationships that can launch students to both academic and career success.
We are teaching minds, we are touching hearts, and we are transforming lives.
Mark Marcos, Teacher at Indian Oasis Elementary Intermediate School in Sells, Arizona
Resources
The following resources are available from AVID and on AVID Open Access to explore related topics in more depth:
- Educator Voices: Student Success Through Engagement, Empowerment, and AVID (podcast episode)
- Building Student Confidence (podcast episode)
- Educator Voices: Relational Capacity (podcast episode)
- Possibility Panel: A Conversation with Recent Graduates (podcast episode)
- From Trials to Triumph, with Dé Kwaan Wynn (podcast episode)
- Mission:MathMinds, with Ruby Arun (podcast episode)
- A Journey From Jamaica to a PhD, with Dr. Winston Benjamin (podcast episode)
- The Other Side of Pain, with Jesula Jeannot (podcast episode)
- Activating Possibility, with Jonathan Grant Brown (podcast episode)
70–30
Reflecting back on her high school AVID experience, Tasha Henderson says that her most meaningful support was 70% general human support and 30% more specific academic support. She points out how grateful she is that her AVID teacher, Ben Solomon, supported her, pushed her, and believed in her. From his perspective, Ben says, “What I think I’m good at is believing in students.” He makes it a priority to tell students, “You have talent. You have potential. Go for it.”
Through her own talent and hard work, as well as Ben’s support, Tasha has achieved success, turning her passion for writing into a fulfilling career. In fact, she recalls her moment of epiphany, thinking, “The thing I like to do could be a career.” That success in turning passion into a career is truly an accomplishment worth celebrating. The following are a few highlights from the episode:
- About Our Guests: Tasha Henderson is a former AVID student who has earned advanced degrees in film studies and screen writing and works as a Television Writer and Producer. Ben Solomon is Tasha’s former AVID teacher who currently works at AVID Center as the Manager of Learning Programs, Products, and Services.
- Passion to Career: Tasha shares that she always wanted to be a writer. That passion was encouraged by her school experiences and by Ben, her AVID teacher. While Ben admits that he was not a writing teacher, he says, “I was able to be in the right place at the right time to fan that flame a little bit.”
- Opportunity Knowledge: Tasha recalls, “I always had an idea that I would go to college. That’s something that you do. That’s the next step in your life.” However, she hadn’t thought about the details—things like majors and college visits. That’s where Tasha’s teachers—including Ben, who she calls Coach Solomon—came into play.
- Enjoying the Job: After participating in a Disney Writing Program, Tasha began getting staffed on various television shows, including Love in the Time of Corona on Freeform and Home Economics on ABC. In her work, Tasha enjoys collaborating with other writers, taking the show through production, and ultimately seeing her name credited as a writer on-screen. She says that it’s fun “getting to hear other perspectives and trying to infuse that into something as a project [and] make something together that again can hopefully bring joy to people, or just make people laugh, or take people out of whatever is going on in their day for 30 minutes.”
- AVID’s Impact: Aside from the support given to her by her teacher, Tasha says that writing activities, Socratic Seminars, and Cornell note-taking skills were big academic benefits from being part of AVID. Her note-taking skills even led her to make new friends in college.
- Making a Difference: While Tasha can recall specific classroom experiences that impacted her in high school, Ben doesn’t recall those specific lessons. They were simply activities in the ongoing journey of designing effective teaching and learning. It’s a good reminder that the impact of those day-to-day interactions makes a big difference in the lives of students, as they did for Tasha.
- The Importance of Believing in Students: Ben says, “What I think I’m good at is believing in students.” He adds, “Students, in some ways, can become what you believe and what you foresee they can become.” In that light, he says, “More so than your training, and your preparation, and anything like that, our beliefs about students and their potential—not globally, like on the individual level—and then how we are communicating those beliefs to them just matters more than we will ever know.”
- Rena’s One Thing: Be “a professional believer.”
- Paul’s One Thing: “The thing that I like to do could be a career.”
- Winston’s One Thing: Tasha is “a generational trendsetter.”
Guiding Questions
If you are listening to the podcast with your instructional team or would like to explore this topic more deeply, here are guiding questions to prompt your reflection:
- What inspires you about Tasha’s story?
- What stands out from Ben’s interview?
- How can teachers support students and let them know that they believe in them?
- How can we provide opportunity knowledge for our students?
- What is your “one thing” from this episode?
Extend Your Learning
- AVID (official webpage)
- AVID Framework Overview (AVID)
- Stay Connected: Join Our AVID Alumni Network! (AVID)