Gallon-Blackmon ’09 Sees Teaching as a Chance to Do Good for Others

Xavier Gallon-Blackmon ’09 is already a beloved teacher and mentor at Baruch College Campus High School in New York City, where he has lived since attending St. John’s University in Queens. He credits his time at the Prep and the teachers he met there as his inspiration. Recently, Joe Boyle ’09, Manager of the Prep Fund, caught up with his classmate to talk about his work and how the Prep prepared him for it.

 

 

XGB: I think all of my combined experiences in life are what still continually inspire my pursuit to do good by others in general. I think that's honestly the beauty of what we all forged together at the Prep (particularly in the ’05-’10 era -- shout-out to all the ’09 bros). One of my very good friends from St. John's was an education major and the first person to tell me that I would be a good teacher. In many ways that person (at the time) saw more in me than I saw in myself (similar to folks like Bill Conners ’80 and Chris Rupertus, who taught me at the Prep). 

 

JB: How has your experience been in educating others and what is the impact it has had on your life? 

 

XGB: I find such fulfillment in what I do for a living, and, again, I think it all boils back down to experience. Joe, you and I are from two completely different walks of life, for example (ed. note: Joe is from Doylestown and Xavier is from North Philadelphia). What's the one thing that links the two of us together and is proof that there's always something bigger than petty disputes? Our shared love and commitment to all things Prep. You went back to the Prep as an employee and you created something that helps keep young alumni together and committed to the Jesuit mission. I try my hardest in how I navigate life professionally and personally to be a beacon back to 17th and Girard. 

 

 

XGB: Not to be redundant, but the experience I had in American Studies as a sophomore (with the aforementioned Dub C and Rupe Dawg) was not only monumental towards my Prep experience, but for my entire life in general. They taught me how to think critically, they modeled partnership with colleagues (which is so crucial to what I'm doing now, and life in general), and they brought me on my first-ever trip to Manhattan (where I now "work" each day). Although I wasn't the best at Bio, Dr. (Barb) Giuliano's outlines were an incredibly significant tool that helped show how much can be explained in a small space. I also really enjoyed Mr. (Christian) Patragnoni’s 11th grade English class. He once openly scolded me for writing a B+ paper on the NBA Draft age limit because he knew I had a deeper level of thinking in me (I also didn't properly cite my sources). The fact that he did that showed me how much he cared, and I responded with an A+ essay on whether or not the narrative of Othello would have flowed properly had he not been a "Moor" (Black). I'll never forget seeing how proud of me for deepening my thinking Mr. Patragnoni was. 

 

 

XGB: In several classes when I struggled, it taught me that failure is inevitable. What's most important is how much you grow from your mistakes in life. In light of what I do now, Mr. Mark Kravetz, a math teacher who maybe should have failed me as a senior, showed me the importance of seeing the bigger picture. Mr. Kravetz knew that I wasn't the best at math to begin with and probably wondered why I took his class as a senior. Even when he could have rightfully failed me (and sent me to summer school before starting college), he saw something else in me that had nothing to do with matrices, probabilities, or statistics, and for that I'll always be grateful.