After 20 years, Franklin Middle's David Calloway still loves teaching, mentoring students

GREEN BAY — David Calloway wears many hats. He's a teacher, coach, father and one of the leaders of an anti-racism student club at Franklin Middle School in Green Bay.

After 20 years of teaching, 10 of them in the Green Bay School District, the St. Louis-native still loves it, he said.

"I love our students and families. They are so unique," Calloway said. "But at the same time, they're so down to earth, so real, so honest, so truthful, caring, thoughtful, just hard-working people. That's the best way to say it."

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As a physical education teacher, of course Calloway has passion for sports. But he didn't always know that he'd become a teacher. He originally went to school to be an athletic trainer.

While he was in college at Missouri State University, one of his professors told him he was, in fact, a teacher.

"At first I was like, 'How do you get to tell me that?' Well then, the more she started exposing me to teaching and the classes and students, and I fell in love," he said. "I was like, 'I don't feel like I'm supposed to be anywhere else.'"

Calloway also leads a student anti-racism club at Franklin Middle School

In 2020, George Floyd's murder was a turning point in the nation's conversation about racism as people across the country marched in demand of racial justice. Around that time, Calloway and his colleagues started gathering to discuss what they could do.

Ultimately, they created a virtual meet-up for staff at Franklin to tackle how they could start addressing racism locally at their school and then branching into the district and larger community.

Then in fall 2021, once students returned to in-person instruction, a student group was created: Anti-Racist Folx. Calloway is one of the group's advisers, and every week, about 60 students meet across Franklin's three lunch periods to have student-led conversations about race.

"They see things in our building that they're like ... 'Hey, this isn't OK. We're hearing students say inappropriate words. What can we do to try to educate or teach or discourage people from using racist terms?'" Calloway said.

The students are leading the change, creating videos and presentations for morning announcements to educate fellow students.

"They'll do it and be very vocal around we're not going to allow this. We're not going to settle for this," Calloway said.

The students tackle big topics like how Black history and the histories of other identity groups are covered in education, looking at how they can be more explicitly taught in classrooms.

The group also takes field trips to cultural events. Last month, it visited the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Mobile Black History Museum and got to attend the Wisconsin Herd's Black History Month Celebration basketball game.

Many students who were in the original group in 2021 are now in high school, and they often ask to come back to Franklin for the Anti-Racist Folx meetings, Calloway said.

"They're always like, 'Can we come back down and go to lunch?'" Calloway said. "You're like, 'No, you can't come back.' But it's cool that they want to."

One of Calloway's favorite teaching memories is getting a shoutout on the radio from former students.

With a 20-year teaching career, Calloway has taught hundreds of students. He doesn't have a single favorite memory, but one that sticks out is when a local radio station asked listeners to name a teacher who impacted them.

Two of Calloway's former students named him.

"I don't know that anybody could have reached me on cloud nine that day, like that was special," he said. "That is why I teach and connect."

A self-described tough love teacher, he wants his students to know he cares for them — but that he will also hold them accountable.

"My philosophy is I teach my kids like I parent my family, my own kids," he said. "I want you to know I love you. I think you're going to be great. I'm going to help you to be great."

With a passion for leading, Calloway has his sights on one day becoming a school principal.

Danielle DuClos is a Report for America corps member who covers K-12 education for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at dduclos@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter @danielle_duclos. You can directly support her work with a tax-deductible donation at GreenBayPressGazette.com/RFA or by check made out to The GroundTruth Project with subject line Report for America Green Bay Press Gazette Campaign. Address: The GroundTruth Project, Lockbox Services, 9450 SW Gemini Drive, PMB 46837, Beaverton, Oregon 97008-7105.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Franklin's David Calloway teaches, coaches & runs a student anti-racism club