It's a calling for some. Others call it a passion. Scholar Joseph Campbell coined the word, bliss. Follow your bliss, he says. “Follow your bliss ... don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.”
No matter how you say it—your calling, your passion, your bliss—it’s about taking a risk, committing to that journey, and trusting that even though you may not know where it will take you, you’re living the life you were meant to live, doing what you love.
For Natalie Ferguson, who graduated from Carlow in 2002 with a dual degree in communication and professional writing, doing what she loves meant taking the risk and moving to New Orleans to teach at the Langston Hughes Charter Academy, the flagship school of the five NOLA 180 charter schools.
Ferguson, who had heard about NOLA 180 through Carlow alumna, Mia Hendrix, who was working at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, which provided funds for the NOLA 180 project, says the mission inspired her. A local non-profit charter management organization, NOLA 180 is designed to turn around failing schools in New Orleans with the goal of sending students to college through preparation for admission to the city’s public and private high schools.
Specifi cally, the Langston Hughes Academy, which opened in August 2007, provides students with a college-preparation curriculum and an extended school day with 50 percent more instructional time than traditional public schools. One of the goals is to deploy a transformation team from Langston Hughes to turn around a chronically failed public school system in 2010.
“When I learned about NOLA and the academy, I felt that this was something I just had to do because of my passion for wanting to make a difference for low income kids. They need a voice,” Ferguson says. “Someone has to encourage them to help them achieve what they desire, and to see they get the tools they need to succeed. That’s why I applied for a school leader fellowship at the Langston Hughes Academy.”
Unfortunately, no fellowships were available when Ferguson applied. Still, the administration was so impressed with her passion for education that they off ered her a staff position as a science teacher for grades four and five, even though she had never taught science before.
“When I got the offer, I weighed the options. The position wasn’t a fellowship, and I wasn’t sure what it would be like to move to a place with no family and friends, but I couldn’t think about that too long,” say Ferguson, who holds a Master of Science degree in Education from Queens College, City University of New York. “If I had, I would have turned around, but I just did it.”
Taking the plunge, she resigned from her job, teaching seventh and eighth grade English Language Arts at I.S. Queens, to move to New Orleans with the hope of making a significant change in children’s lives.
The first three and half months in New Orleans were hard. She moved to Jefferson Parish, which is located 15 minutes away from the academy. Without a car, Ferguson had to walk everywhere because there were very few buses operating in the city. To get to work, she relied on her colleagues from the academy.
“It was lonely without friends and family,” she says. “I felt like I didn’t have a home, but I had to make the best out of the experience.”
According to Ferguson, her willingness to take risks and her desire to help others through education was stoked at Carlow. It was here that her passion for lifelong learning flourished.
“Carlow taught me to take risks and to be a leader in midst of adversity. One of the things I did at Carlow was revitalize the student chapter of Women in Communications. Initially, interest in the department wasn’t high, but by graduation it was a key organization for communication majors. By working with classmates and with support by faculty members like Dr. Gabrich and Dr. Balmert, I developed leadership skills and become a well-rounded person,” says Ferguson, recipient of the 2002 Student Government Leadership Award and the Social Science Leadership Award, as well as the 2003 Student Government Outstanding Alumnae Award.
During and after her time at Carlow, Ferguson logged many hours volunteering for organizations like Americorps, Freedom School, and the Sojourner House. Even in her professional experience, she chose to advocate for others, especially African Americans, while working at places like the Urban League of Pittsburgh where, in addition to writing speeches for the president, Ferguson delved into research on African American disparities, before moving into the field of education.
In March, Carlow’s Alternative Spring Break students visited Ferguson’s classroom, dubbed “Carlow University”—all rooms are named after the teachers’ alma maters—and handed out Carlow University T-shirts, hats, folders, and pencils. According to Ferguson (far right) that visit really impacted the kids—several girls hope to attend Carlow in 2015.
These experiences really paid off to prepare her for teaching in New Orleans. “It’s challenging. A lot of students fall far below the standard level. Many haven’t been in school since Katrina. There are a lot of kids in emotional and psychological distress—there’s a great need in that department,” says Ferguson. “But there are a lot of rewards. I’m teaching a new subject—science—which I’ve never taught before. A lot of students had very little science education before Katrina. So, it really excites them. They are really enthusiastic working with hands-on experiments. They are so inquisitive and are learning fast. For some, education just wasn’t a priority even before Katrina. And then afterward, it was all about survival.”
Through her volunteer and professional teaching experience in both public and charter schools, Ferguson believes she knows what’s working and what’s not working when it comes to teaching low-income kids. One day she plans to do more work on the policy side of education, but for now she’s committed to the classroom.
“This experience has made me even more passionate about education. I’m encouraged every day seeing kids learn and grow, and I sleep peacefully at night and wake up with a smile on my face because I’m know I’m making a difference. The benefits might not show right now, but in 10, 15, or 20 years, a student may say that it was Ms. Ferguson who helped them become who they are today.”
Ferguson says she wouldn’t be the person she is today, doing what she’s doing if it weren’t for Carlow.
“I could be working in the news, writing speeches, working at a radio or TV station, but I’m just so committed to Carlow’s mission of lifelong learning. To me, lifelong learning means never stop trying new things, always finding ways to make improvements and effect change. Coming to New Orleans was the most selfl ess things I’ve ever done—I didn’t know I had it in me.
“But that’s the thing, you never know what lies inside you. You never know until you take a risk and do something new.”
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The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the
US. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
