Richards Middle School teacher helps failing student reclaim his education

Tony was repeating the seventh grade, for the third time.

He sat in the back of Andrea Bingham’s math class at Richards Middle School putting forth little to no effort in his school work. His concern was acting up to impress his much younger peers. Mrs. Bingham’s concern was finding a way to reach Tony.

The relentless math teacher pursued Tony with the kind of fervor only a quality educator can muster. The kind of pursuit that parallels a master sculptor meticulously chiseling away at a slab of rock to create an amazing work of art. She studied Tony. Watched him. Talked to him. She discovered that one-on-one attention brought out in him the kind of behavior needed to make strides in his academics. He was far behind his peers and needed a desperate push forward to catch him up.

So, the attentive math teacher, Mrs. Bingham, cultivated a plan.

She recommended him for a special program of the district that would catapult him ahead to his age-appropriate grade in high school. Three years later, Tony walked into Richards Middle in search of the relentless teacher who saw something in him, never gave up on him, and pushed him toward reclaiming his education. He had diploma in hand.

There’s been an influx of attention lately on test scores and school performance. The other week at the school board meeting, schools were recognized for their achievement, and there’s a friendly competition brewing between principals and faculties of schools across this district of 56 schools.

A little friendly competition never hurt anyone. In fact, vying for the top spot is a good thing. But one thing to remember in all this talk about which school out-performs all the others is that there are names and faces attached to these scores. Names like Tony and Mrs. Bingham.

When all the hoopla about scores settles down, our educational system remains about one thing. People. Magnificent, amazing people. Kids who soar, and kids who struggle. Students who were born smart, and others who must really work at it. Teachers who push each other to become better. Instructors who work tirelessly for the betterment of their students. Our children are being taught by some of the most talented, skilled educators I have ever seen. Collectively, these people join to make Muscogee County truly a premier district.

Countless stories of success like that of Tony and Mrs. Bingham occur across our city, but we rarely hear of them. We don’t hear about the growing number of kids who come from nothing and rise to something. Or we might not keep track of the many students who move on to Ivy League colleges or multimillion dollar corporations. We don’t always see the relentless passion of our tried-and-true classroom teachers. And we aren’t privy to the many actions our fearless educators take to save our kids or equip them for future successes.

But the combination of these two remarkable groups of people — student and teacher — become the numbers we as a district and community look at when discussing which school is best or which school to avoid. No matter the address, no matter which part of town, our schools are dynamic, full of truly amazing people we can certainly be proud of.

This story was originally published February 28, 2017 at 4:27 PM with the headline "Richards Middle School teacher helps failing student reclaim his education."