Told she needed a flash drive for her class, Verta Tucker hesitated for several days. Finally, in the campus bookstore, when she was sure no one was looking, she said, “I’m told I need a flash drive; what is a flash drive?” With that, Tucker faced her biggest fear: technology.
After more than 40 years away from school, Tucker was starting anew.
Since she began working in a government office at the age of 14, Tucker has spent a lifetime helping people: training them how to apply for benefits, drug counseling in Ohio, adjudicating unemployment benefits for the State of Nevada and the Arizona State Employment Services. Most recently, she drove a school bus for the Tolleson Unified High School district for five years.
That bus took her on the ride of her life. In daily contact with students, she treasured interacting with them. Except for one thing: she was fed up with their common use of profanity. “We weren’t angels when we were coming up,” she reflected, “but in those days, if you used that kind of language, you at least looked up to make sure there were no adults around.” Tucker couldn’t bear the lack of respect they showed each other – and themselves.
But she didn’t let her misgivings stop her. When the kids acted up, she didn’t walk away. “I started talking to them, trying to understand them,” she said. I asked our principal, “What’s wrong with our children?”
She learned that if you were to follow them home, you might be more understanding. She started to realize they wanted someone to sit and listen to them, not to prejudge them. “They really needed structure, someone to show they cared,” she concluded. So Tucker – sibling to nine, mother to three, grandmother to nine and great-grandmother to two – exercised “tough love.”
“I talked to them about how they used their time at school,” she said. “I told them, it’s not a fashion show; it’s a place to get your education.” Tucker says she was passionate about this, having grown up in a time when children – particularly those of color – didn’t get as many opportunities.
Gradually, the young people warmed to Tucker. She started wondering how she could do more to help them. Today, she credits those students – and her desire to help them – as her inspiration to pursue a teaching career.
Tucker arrived on the Estrella Mountain Community College campus in the summer of 2009. This May, she will graduate with an Associate in Arts (AA) degree in Elementary Education.
A self-described “people person and traveler” who embraces change, Tucker plans to move to Texas after graduation, where she plans to attend university and major in American History, then teach (possibly at college level) and pursue a Master’s in education. “It keeps you young to keep studying,” she said.
What would she tell her former passengers on the school bus? “Most of the important things in the world have been achieved by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all,” she affirmed. “Believe in yourself and just go for it. There’s no height you can’t attain if you apply yourself and take advantage of resources. Take advantage of those resources NOW. Don’t wait until you’re my age. Run with the ball while it’s in your court.”
Consistent with her life of service, Tucker said, “It’s not about you, it’s about others, and how we help each other.” She believes it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are, but maintains there’s no height you can’t attain if you believe in yourself.
Tucker says EMCC improved her ability to think critically. “It gave me the boost to want to accomplish more. It was a testing ground, because when you’re 40-plus years out of school, a lot of how you do at this stage determines where else you can go, what you can achieve.” She appreciates the people who helped her, from the tutors in the commons, to the financial department – and even the helpers in the bookstore, where she bought her first flash drive – which she now brandishes with confidence.
In fact, she recently returned to Tolleson High School as part of an internship. This time, she taught a class and even assisted with PowerPoint presentations. But although she’s mastered technology in ways she never expected, what Tucker is most proud of is her new-found confidence. “It’s a stepping stone to where I want to go,” she said.