Nathaniel S. Courtney
âI am Nathaniel S. Courtney Jr., AKA Nate Turner, and I teach because it is my firm belief that all students, regardless of race, religion, or socio-economic status, have the ability to learn and to become productive citizens who make meaningful contributions to society. I believe that all children deserve a quality education from sincere, caring, and qualified teachers who encourage students to maximize their potential and live out their true, divine purpose! Any adult who steps foot into the halls of an institution of learning should be genuine, passionate, and dedicated to the service of leading, motivating, and inspiring our youth through educational empowerment. As a proud African-American father, activist, artist, educator, and entrepreneur who is passionate about knowledge of self, history, family, music, and education, my purpose in life is to help others discover their true, divine mission, and lead a life filled with purpose and to leave a lasting legacy and mark on this world.
Growing up in Florida and spending summers in Brooklyn, I learned early on that itâs the âsame gameâ being run on Black and Brown communities, no matter the region in which you live. When I was stopped for âwalking on the wrong side of the roadâ in my neighborhood in Florida, I quickly made the correlation between that experience and the time I was âstopped and friskedâ in New York City. The first time I met the police was when my cousin was stopped and detained. One of the officers saw me crying and offered me a cookie. Interestingly, while the cookie seemed like a nice gesture, I distinctly recall how my cousin and the other adults in the car were treated.
I teach to make my people aware of their human and civil rights. I teach to help instill dignity and pride in those who might otherwise feel inferior because of the long history of systemic racism, stereotyping, and overall oppression we have faced. I teach to help people persevere and overcome. I teach to wake up those that are asleep and ensure they stay âwoke.â I teach so that we know who we are and the history of who we are. Afterall, in the words of the late, great John Henrick Clarke, "History is a clock that people use to tell their political and cultural time of day. It is a compass they use to find themselves on the map of human geography. It tells them where they are, but more importantly, what they must be."













