Phyllis Hammonds

The best career advice came from my mother, who told me to always be honest and truthful and work hard. My mother worked hard at everything she did, and that's what she wanted her children to do - to be honest, truthful, and work hard. But maybe the best advice she gave me was that wherever I went, she said always find your church, hook up with your sorority, and find a mentor, somebody like a mother. I did that wherever I went, and that helped me in my career and in my personal life.

I tell young women the same things my mother taught me. I grew up in racism and segregation, so we knew our place, but we also knew that as Jesse Jackson would say, I am somebody. That's what my mother taught me. I'm mentoring a couple of women now, and even though we live in a rural community that's racist, they still don't know it when they see it because they grew up in a mostly integrated school district. So I'm helping them understand that racism is in existence and there are warning signs they need to tend to. Be true to yourself. Do not let someone crush your dreams. Do not allow someone to make you feel like you're nobody. Get as much education as you can. Read, read, read - I read everything. You cannot be in your profession and not know what the latest trends are, what has happened historically. You've got to have that knowledge. You got to learn, you got to respect all people. Learning is the learner's responsibility. You've got to be aware of your surroundings, especially for women of color, so that you are not being mistreated or disrespected. You are somebody. And treat others like you want to be treated. I tell young women they need to go back to school, get more education, because this country is built on what kind of degree, especially in certain disciplines, that you need to have. I tell them you are my daughters, no matter what color they are.

The biggest challenge is how to help my community and help the children with their literacy rates. I've been working with the school district volunteering, helping them get grants and select appropriate curricula to help parents know their roles in a child's education. We have a lot of young parents and we have to meet them where they are, and that's not always easy. Many educators don't understand that - they want to say 'well, I did this,' but no, it's a different time. Getting people to volunteer is a struggle because we don't have money to pay people to work. You have to have that compassion yourself. Personally, people see me as a radical because I'm an activist, and when they want to remain silent, I tell them I don't have checks, child, no money, honey, but I have God, I have faith, and being for people. Getting people to speak up and out for themselves, their children and their families is difficult. When things are not fair, I will ask them if they want me to help them. It's just finding volunteers, helping parents understand their value, and dealing with people who don't understand me. After living in different places, when I came home it was more or less a culture shock because it hadn't changed much. I saw things that needed to be done, and when I could not get any help, I just went on and did them. Getting grants is another challenge - sometimes grants are so political around here. You can apply, you have all these things you've done or doing, and it's very competitive, but we also know it's racist in some cases.

The values most important to me are respecting all people and respect in general. Going back to my mother, she believed in that. When she passed, my cousin said 'I want you to remember your mother was an angel.' She was Christian, but fair. She was like Jesus - she would flip tables in the temple when she thought something was not correct. So I have that value. As Maya Angelou said, and I'm paraphrasing, believe a person when they show you themselves. That's what I believe - when they show me who they are, and it's not based on respect of all people, is not based on treating people the way you should be treated, the way you want to be treated, then I walk away. That's worked with me in my personal and professional life most of the time.