Areka Watkins-Thomas says watching her mother work at the Boys & Girls Club inspired her to choose a career that involved working with young people.
Watkins-Thomas, 48, graduated from Amanda Elzy High School. Like her mom, the late Mamie Watkins, she went on to earn a degree in speech communication.
Since 2000, Watkins-Thomas has taught at a variety of schools in different areas, from Canton to a Montessori school in Gurnee, a village in Illinois, in which students are taught to be self-sufficient at a young age. For example, Watkins-Thomas said, the kindergartners she taught washed their own dishes after lunch.
Watkins-Thomas has worked at Elzy for seven years. She came back to the Greenwood area to move in with her mother and her father, David Watkins, pastor of Faith Temple Church of God in Christ.
Her current role is teaching 10th-grade English. She said she enjoys her job, particularly the day-to-day interactions with her students and being able to reach out to them to provide understanding, having been in their shoes years ago.
“My mission is always to motivate young people to be the best that they can be at all times and never let anyone tell them anything different,” she said.
Each year for five years, Watkins-Thomas has held an awards ceremony for her students called Diamond in the Rough.
The black-tie affair is held at the Leflore County Civic Center each Good Friday in memory of Watkins-Thomas’ mother, who died around that holiday.
Mamie Watkins dropped out of high school but earned a GED at Mississippi Valley State University, followed by an associate’s degree at Mississippi Delta Community College and then a bachelor’s degree at MVSU.
The other aim of the Diamond in the Rough ceremony is to celebrate students’ accomplishments and motivate them to continue high school to graduate. Watkins-Thomas said she has seen students drop out after 10th grade for various reasons.
Every one of her students receives an award. “Just a small award will give them that extra push to say it’s worth it” to finish high school, she said.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic in Leflore County transitioned classes online in March, Watkins-Thomas has been able to keep up with her students through group messages. “I look forward to getting back to the school year, be it virtual or in person,” she said.
In her free time, Watkins-Thomas likes to read and exercise. She also teaches drama to a group of students in Indianola and takes care of her father.
Her sister, Teresa Watkins, a police officer working for the public school district, suffered a stroke in February.
Watkins-Thomas is married to Terry Thomas. They have three adult children — Denise Edwards, Dwayne Springs and Akeem Springs.
•Contact Gerard Edic at 581-7239 or gedic@gwcommonwealth.com.
