Aquaus Kelley (@aquaus) | #BowTieTuesday
Introduction: This week’s #BowTieTuesday Educator Spotlight goes to an educator that I met at #EdCampNJ in November. The conversation was geared towards why relationships matter in education. The educator who is featured this week was dropping knowledge bombs in the room and I knew I had to connect with him after the session to follow his work. The Edu-Rock Star that I’ll be recognizing this week is none other than Mr. Aquaus Kelley (@aquaus), a 5th-grade teacher at Roosevelt Elementary in New Brunswick, NJ.
Educational Pursuit: Aquaus may be a novice in the world of education but his impact is going to be monumental. He began as a substitute teacher since 2012 for New Brunswick Public Schools. While it took him a few years to make the decision to become a teacher, once he committed, he was locked in!!! He had come to the realization that his presence and desire to impact the lives of other people was best served in his role as an educator. Despite failing his praxis exams a countless number of times, he finally obtained my Certificate of Eligibility to become a teacher in December 2016 and the rest is history!
Most Memorable Moment: From the moment I met Aquaus, I could tell he was going to be one of those educator’s who would have a plethora of memorable moments to choose from. More recently, he had the opportunity to moderate a student-centered event presented by Courageous Voices entitled, “Students Speak.” Courageous Voices is a professional learning community that Aquaus was invited to join and participate in by other colleagues from within our organization. The event took place at New Brunswick High School. Not only was this event attended by a number of committed students, it was also attended by a variety of board members, school leaders, and district supervisors. Our Superintendent, Dr. Johnson also participated. He found it to be a refreshing, touching, and transformational exchange of ideas, thoughts, and opinions. He is looking forward to continuing the work he does with Courageous Voices as a means of advocating on behalf of our students and community members.
Personal Learning Interests: Aquaus is currently learning more about educational leadership, global citizenship, social impact initiatives, and policy. Some reports on his desk at the moment are, “Benchmarking for Success: Ensuring U.S. Students Receive a World-Class Education” and “Global Shapers Survey.” When he’s not involved in education, he’s definitely sharpening his skills as it pertains to business, brand strategy, and content development. You can find him constantly watching interviews and discussions on YouTube as well as listening to podcasts on Soundcloud.
The Fun Stuff
Aquaus’s go-to Karaoke Song: Wanna Love You Girl by Robin Thicke
Aquaus’s Inside Scoop: While not as rare as it was 20 years ago, Aquaus was born and raised on a plant-based diet. Yes, vegan…
Thank you, Aquaus, for your heartfelt efforts to improve education each and every day you step foot inside a classroom. I value your dedicated efforts to continue to build positive relationships among all stakeholders within our context in addition to the positive impact you have had on my PLN! I truly appreciate all that you do to keep moving education forward.
Thanks for reading and sharing!
Bow-Tie Joe
