(This week The Columbian-Progress spotlights new Jefferson Middle School principal Levi Robinson.)
Q: When and where were you born?
A: I was born March, 23, 1971, in Booneville.
Q: Where did you attend school?
A: I graduated from Leflore County High School in 1989 then went to Jackson State for two years, and then I transferred to Alcorn State and finished up with a bachelor’s in technology education. Then I went back to Jackson State and got my master’s in education leadership then last year I just finished my specialist’s in instructional leadership at William Carey.
Q: What was your childhood like?
A: It was great. I made some lifelong friends. Things were a little bit different then. It was more of a family-oriented neighborhood. Everybody knew everybody and their parents, so if you went down the street to some else’s house their parent would treat you the same way your parents would treat you, good or bad. I played football and baseball, so I had a good time.
Q: Where do you work? Tell us about your job/company.
A: As the principal at Jefferson Middle School, I’m going to be actively in the halls and in the classrooms. To me, you can’t be effective if you’re in your office all day. You have to be out in the school where the students and teachers can see you. It will allow me to establish the culture I want to establish here where we’re working hard to be successful. To do that, I have to build relationships with both the students and teachers.
Q: What led you to your profession?
A: My dad, Levi T. Robinson Sr., and my mom, Stella. When I was in college, I really didn’t know what I wanted to be. My first major at Jackson State was electronics. My mother passed away when I was 18, so when I left Jackson State to go to Alcorn was partly because my dad said, “Look, come home and be with me. Let’s try to get you going in the right direction,” because toward the end of my time at Jackson State I honestly was having too much fun. At that point in time, we sat down and talked about exactly what I wanted to do. He started talking to me about being a teacher, and the more he talked about it the more it started appealing to me. So I went for it, and it was the best decision I ever made. My father has always been my role model, and I trusted his advice. He was a professor at Mississippi Valley State for 12 years and at Alcorn State for 13 years. Once I was a teacher, his thing was “How far do you want to go?” There’s only so far you can go as a teacher with your impact being relegated to the classroom. We talked about either going into administration or counseling. I chose administration. I thought I could have a bigger impact there and have a say so on developing a culture.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: Being able to work with the kids. When you’re a teacher, you’re just in your classroom so you only have a relationship with that limited group. As an administrator, I’m able to move around the building and have a bigger impact on students in all grades.
Q: What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
A: It’s two-fold. Children, especially in this age group, are a challenge. Every day is a new day. You deal with a kid on Monday, and the weight of the world is on their shoulders and they’re mad about this and that, and by Wednesday they’re happy and a completely different kid. They’re trying to figure things out at this particular age group. They want to be adults and think they want to be adults at times, but at the same time they want to be kids. It fluctuates as they grow, mature and deal with their problems. Things that aren’t a big deal like relationships at that age, to them it’s the biggest thing in the world. Trying to help them grow and maneuver through that can be tough. The other part about that, as a leader, is getting your teachers to buy in to what you want them to do and believe in you. If your teachers don’t support you and your vision, it’s tough. It’s important to get everyone on the same page.
Q: What advice would you give someone considering your career path?
A: The biggest advice I would give someone starting off in college is listen more. We don’t do a good job at listening when we’re younger. Being able to listen and take advice from people who have done it already whether it’s advice from your parents, your college advisor or teachers—listening to adults who have experienced what you’re going through always helps. Listen and ask for help would be the best advice I could give anyone.
Q: What was your first job?
A: I worked at McDonald’s in Jackson for three years.
Q: Do you have children?
A: I have an 18-year-old son, Tylon, who is going to Ole Miss in August. Then I have a daughter, Kayla, who is 22 and a junior at Jackson State.
Q: If you could have anything for your last meal on earth, what would it be?
A: You can’t go wrong with a good steak and a baked potato. I love pasta, too.
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
A: Hawaii. Growing up, I used to watch “Hawaii Five-0.” Watching the TV series, Hawaii always seemed like such a beautiful place, and I’ve always wanted to go. The water looks so beautiful.
Q: What hobbies do you like to do in your spare time?
A: I like to read, and I like movies. When I’m reading or going to the movies, it allows me to unwind, get away and focus on something else rather than all the other things I have to deal with. When I go to the movies for those two hours or reading, I’m in a whole different place.
Q: What do you enjoy about Columbia and Marion County?
A: When I was younger, I would visit my grandmother. My father is from Sandy Hook, so I spent at least two or three summers down here. My very first library card came from the Columbia-Marion County Public Library. I’ve never lived here before, but I like that it’s a small town. It’s a little more intimate, and you get a chance to know people more and play a part in the community. Plus, small-town thinking is a little bit different than in larger cities, and that can be a good thing and a bad thing.
Q: If you could have lunch with anyone from your life or history, who would it be and why?
A: It would be between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Barack Obama. Martin Luther King, with everything he went through to try to create a better world of equality, then you look at Barack Obama and he’s like the fulfillment of that. I would want to truly understand from Martin Luther King of what that struggle was like firsthand because a lot of times we’re not appreciative of that. With Barack being historically the first black president, I’d want to know about everything he had to go through to get to that point.
Q: If you didn’t have to worry about money, what would you do all day?
A: I would say travel. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been able to go to a few places and that’s piqued my interest to want to see more. I want to go to Hawaii, but there’s so many places you can visit in the United States and some amazing things to see.
Q: Would you rather read a good book or watch a good movie and why?
A: It’s hard but I’d rather read a good book. When you watch a movie, that’s someone else’s interpretation. That’s them building visual aspect you can see and deliver something to you, but when you read you create that imagery for yourself and trying to figure out what exactly the author is trying to say. I like reading mysteries when I want to get away. I love Agatha Christie and Jack Reacher.
Q: If you could describe your morals in three words, what would they be?
A: Honest, dependable and trustworthy.
Q: How would you like to be remembered?
A: This may seem like a very general response, but I would just simply say as a good person. I strive to be a good person with how I treat people because the impression we make is important. There’s a corny expressions in education, but it’s true: “Students won’t remember what you taught them, but they will remember how you made them feel.” It’s about relationships. The relationships we have with people is the most important.
— Joshua Campbell
Pictured Above: Levi Robinson is the new principal at Jefferson Middle School and is excited to begin the school year. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
