love & honor
ROB HENDRICKS ’11 MED ’18 wasn’t a
bad student growing up. He was a late bloomer, an introvert who many wrote off as being shy. As a result, he wasn’t being challenged, and no one noticed. That’s why he’s now committed to helping others like him — the ones who are overlooked for one reason or another — by ensuring they have strong mentors in the classroom, especially Black role models. “I’m always looking for how do we get that child involved. How do we make sure they are going to be supported,” Rob said. “I had questions that didn’t always get answered.” Founder of the He Is Me Institute, he sees his mission as empowering Black men to discover teaching through collaborative programs that help school districts recruit and retain Black male educators.
NEW KIND OF GUIDANCE
ADDRESSING A LACK OF BLACK MALE TEACHERS: A NATIONAL CRISIS With school districts struggling to recruit and retain Black male educators, Rob Hendricks ’11 MEd ’18 is making it his mission to bring more into classrooms By Josh Chapin ’02
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miamian magazine
Rob started to break out of his shell in high school, first as a news anchor for a broadcast journalism class and then through an internship as a Walgreens store manager. By the time Rob arrived at Miami, he was already becoming more social. He acknowledges that he didn’t have the easiest transition academically, but he made his time count by joining 10-15 organizations. He also helped found the Black Presidents Caucus. Originally a Business major, he switched to Education after taking a course on pedagogy. That led to work study with America Reads America Counts and a chance to interact with students at his former elementary school. After graduation, he continued in a leadership role as assistant principal at Match High School in Boston, where he saw students who weren’t receiving the help he thought they needed. There was one student in particular whose struggles mirrored his own.