February 3, 1999
New York teaching post
was an eye opener for Texan
___FORT WORTH (ABP)-- Kevin Kinkade, 25, teaches and coaches junior high football at a private Christian school in Fort Worth.
___He spent his first two years after college teaching junior-high math in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City.
___ The assignment was part of Teach for America, a program which places college graduates in public schools in low-income areas.
___Beginning in high school, Kinkade worked in neighborhood centers, mentoring programs, Young Lifeand other organizations. He learned about Teach for America and decided to apply at the last minute before he was to graduate from college. He is still considering medical school, but the brief detour was definitely worthwhile, he said.
___"People asked me, 'If you're going to do this, why not be a missionary? Why join this secular group?' I was nervous about going to New York. When I drove in, I was scared to death. But I felt I was doing God's work. I knew it was where I was supposed to be."
___Washington Heights is the poorest congressional district in America, and every one of the students in Kinkade's school came from families living below the poverty line. One of the most difficult aspects of his job was reporting cases of child abuse to authorities, he said.
___Despite the trying environment, Kinkade enjoyed the chance to be involved with his students. On one occasion, he was able to take a group of students out of the city on their first-ever camping trip. "I miss teaching in public schools," he said. "They were good kids in bad situations."
___Kinkade said he was most thankful for the close friendships he developed in New York with people from very different backgrounds in the incredibly multicultural and cosmopolitan city.
___Coming from a much different environment in Texas, he said, the diversity was a challenge at first. "You've got to have an open mind ... . Why shut a door to someone when I don't have to?"
___He realized he was being watched very closely by friends and fellow teachers, as well as his students.
___"A lot of people saw a very different kind of Christian than they pictured. I didn't shove the gospel down their throats or tell them they were going to hell. I tried to care about them. I mourn for these people and I want for them to have a happy life, and to know the peace that Christ gives."Frontpage / Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!