Today we’d like to introduce you to Katina Booth White.
Hi Katina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
It’s hard for me to summarize my story in just a few words. It begins with a skinny, shy, insecure, dimpled, thick-thighed, awkward black girl from Southwest Little Rock, Arkansas. Who was never quite able to fit in. So, my journey into education and where I am now was somewhat off the beaten path. It was not on my radar to become an educator when I graduated high school. During my childhood, I dreamed of becoming a biomedical engineer. Despite the fact that Washington University offered one of the best biomedical engineering programs closest to home at the time, it was not affordable for me. So I chose mechanical engineering and later switched to industrial engineering due to the limited number of females in mechanical engineering and my fear of being surrounded by so many men.
Consequently, I spent six years trying to figure out engineering, life, and myself. My mental health suffered during those times due to episodes of anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. After six years, with multiple failed or dropped courses and a terrible GPA, I decided to go home.
Thus started my journey into education and self-awareness. After returning home to Little Rock, I started spending time with these incredible individuals who saw the world similarly to me. There had always been a question in my mind about whether I could be smart, care for my community, and love all those things that make me a black woman. The idea of assimilation didn’t appeal to me. The only thing I wanted was to be myself. My authentic self!
My unique, intelligent, African American Vernacular English-speaking self was who I wanted to be! As much as I was passionate about math and science, I was equally passionate about my creative self. In the same way that learning protons and electrons is important to me, art and poetry are also in my heart. I struggled to accept those qualities about myself for a long time. However, these individuals were brilliant, creative, and loved their culture and community. All of those things were necessary for me to be the educator I was meant to be.
I also began working for the Arkansas Department of Education during this time. My experience at the Arkansas Department of Education provided me with a better understanding of how the educational system operates. It was also at this time that I decided to pursue a career in education. I wrote in my poetry journal in 2007, “Lord, I believe I am destined to become an educator. I cannot afford it, nor do I know how it will happen, but I will let you decide.”
A few months later, I received a letter from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock offering me a job paying 90 percent of my undergraduate tuition. This is where I earned my degree in Middle Childhood Education with an emphasis on Science and Math. As I embarked on my educational journey, God opened doors in many ways that I would not be able to list THEM all. My experience includes organizing and leading competitive robotics teams that have competed at the state, regional, and national levels. I have had the privilege and honor of being able to teach young people who have profoundly impacted my life. As much as I have impacted the lives of the children I have taught, they have impacted me as well. My accomplishments include being named Teacher of the Year in two different districts and being one of twenty-five teachers nationwide to be recognized as a Ford Unsung Hero. Being recognized for my efforts and past work is humbling, but it also reminds me how much more work remains to be done. Children, educators, and community members need to be heard more. Furthermore, STEM is an essential and important part of our world and its impact on our day-to-day lives must be translated.
Additionally, I worked as co-curriculum coordinator for a K-8 summer camp located at the largest academic research institute in the state of Arkansas. It was a perfect marriage of my passions for art, community, STEM, teaching, and historically marginalized communities. Due to its success and national recognition, the program now operates at eight sites throughout Arkansas, and I have been tasked with overseeing the curriculum for those programs. In this capacity, I currently serve as curriculum coordinator for a Arkansas-wide STEM-Health academy for this institution, which is open to students in kindergarten through 12th grades.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, absolutely not! Insecurities from childhood, becoming a single mother, coping with imposter syndrome, and overcoming a domestic abusive relationship was all part of the journey. It is a journey I am still on. The times when I cried in my classroom storage closet when I felt I could no longer push through, the many financial obligations of being both a classroom educator with a limited income and a single mother while trying to make an impact on other young humans have sometimes proven too much! BUT GOD!
Many times, I have thought about leaving education and trying something else, but I know that impacting those communities that do not have access is where my heart is. Hence, I rest, pray, go to therapy, love myself, re-access my motivation, and continue working. In spite of fear, I seem to have the courage to move forward when it comes to positively impacting children. In the midst of all the questions such as “Am I good enough”, “Am I smart enough”, and “Am I good at what I am doing?” Despite all the questions, I continue to walk forward and do the work. It brings to mind a song by Mali Music
“I tell you when you’ve got a made-up mind
Even though winter feels like summertime
In the night you see the light of day
Cause I’ve been blind for way too long
And you can’t take my light away
Even though all my times aren’t happy times
I get unsure and hope for brighter days
I never let it slow my pace
So knowing failure ain’t an option
And I’ve been promised
And I’m on my way up
Said I believe, I believe
But it’s a dream that I ain’t seen yet
Chasing a dream that I ain’t dreamed yet
But I’mma meet it halfway if I keep on walking, walking, walking
If I keep on walking yeah I know it when I see it walking, walking when I see it walking”
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
As a curriculum coordinator, I am responsible for developing engaging STEM-Health exposure opportunities for various students across the state of Arkansas. Our program is aimed at diversifying the healthcare workforce in Arkansas. To summarize, I CREATE fun and IMPACTFUL activities for summer intensive camps for scholars in kindergarten through 12th grade, in addition to building the capacity of educators in the state.
Creating culturally relevant STEM education for ALL students, specifically those from underserved and historically excluded communities, is my specialty. Teaching and creating STEM engagement opportunities that are both relatable to the real world, and culture, and fostering a hands-on learning environment are my strengths. It is most rewarding for me to see how something that just starts out as an idea can be implemented with intention and fidelity and have a lasting impact on young people. That’s what I get to do! Families and communities across our state are impacted as a result.
A children’s book that I co-authored with my sisters Amber Booth-McCoy and Cortney Booth-Akers is also something I am proud to include in my line of work. The book “STEM Looks Like ME” was born out of a challenge I gave students during the closing ceremony at a summer camp. In an effort to foster students’ identity as early as possible, my sister Amber Booth-McCoy decided it would make an excellent book for students from historically excluded communities.
It’s my ability to be myself that sets me apart! A Mechatronics and programming fanatic, hip hop lover, AAVE speaker, STEM enthusiast, community builder, and loc wearer. Being that is a real pleasure! You won’t find another ME anywhere else! In this way, I hope to model what it looks like for young person to bring their whole self to STEM careers.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and are any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Yes, of course! I learned that Black women’s mental health, rest, education, and labor matter! In 2020, I realized I didn’t have a place to call home. Every aspect of my identity felt attacked. I was a black woman, a mother, and an educator. Oh my goodness! There was a need for a space to let my feelings out! Cry! Scream! A good laugh! Without judgment. I realized during this time that my belief in myself affected me both personally and professionally.
During this period, I also came to realize that I no longer knew what I needed to be the person I wanted to be. I needed spaces where I could share my internal struggles as a mother, black woman, and educator! It was with a group of sisters that I found that space. That space with my sisters gave me the opportunity to unpack emotional baggage. The experience led me to begin a deep introspection about where I wanted to go and how to get there. These were my sisters who encouraged me and hyped me up without any jealousy or competition, just a desire to see me succeed. Our goal was to win together! Not only professionally, but also personally. It would not have been possible for me to get through 2020 without God, therapy, family, and my sister circle.
Last but not least, I learned that community matters. To get through the crisis, I needed my community and support system. It played a vital role in my development and molded me into the person I am today.
Contact Info:
Suggest a Story: NashvilleVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know
here.
