Dedications.

Hard Work and Caring: Edward Constantine
Spend 10 minutes of your day talking with Ed. You may only need half that time, but you will hear it. At times when I would hear Ed talk about education, there was a passionate rush of urgency to get the words out. “You know what’s wrong with the system right now?” Ed would say, and then Ed would point out objectives of learning that needed to be addressed. He knew how important family was to a student feeling loved and cared for. He knew how incredibly important structure was for students who were falling behind. In these conversations, Ed would often pause to reach out to a student passing by: “hey, hey, hey, how’s your day going?”, or: “hey, tell your mom that I’m going to email her if you don’t start turning in your assignments”, or: “hey, come over here, have you considered playing a sport?” In every turn of his head and every interaction with a student in the hallway, Ed was making connections with what mattered the most--the students.
 
Ed may share his philosophy with you if time permits, and you may walk away feeling more inspired to carry out your day as a teacher. And even while Ed was walking away, he was planning on making changes in Education and becoming an Assistant Principal. When Ed would share with me his goal of becoming an Assistant Principal, or I would follow up, sometimes he would lament, shake his head and say: “I’m too old man, they’re never going to let me in”. I would counter and tell him that was nonsense and assure him that he was going to make changes, that he had the vision of quality education, and that eventually the powers that be would come to their senses. Perhaps it was the athlete in Ed that accepted rejection as inspiration to try harder and keep fighting for what he believed in. One year I returned to Enloe and Ed wasn’t there. A little shocked. I walked around the school and discovered he had moved into an Assistant Principal position at Greenhope High School. I emailed Ed and congratulated him, and he thanked me for saying something to him in the hallway that encouraged him. I was so impressed that he never gave up, and I felt the news was more so a win for quality Education than it was for Ed.  In this feature Article you will hear from students that have been impacted by Ed’s teachings. You will hear teaching colleagues who rose through the ranks of his classroom into also being teachers. And most importantly, you will hear from Ed’s son, who is now a father himself.

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From a Student on a Teacher
Where do I begin when writing a student’s perspective about Mr. Constantine? Do I write how he was loved by us all, or do I discuss how he was a black male teacher (sadly uncommon in Wake County Schools) teaching a complex technical subject in a Magnet IB School of Distinction? Mr. Constantine was an inspirational force, particularly to me and many other black students. As a minority student, I watched his actions and looked up to him as a role model, and while he may have been a small fish in a big pond, he was MY big fish. When Mr.
Constantine stepped into a room, he commanded respect, but not in a way one might think. When the word  “silence” pierced the classroom in his heavy Jamaican accent, it would command every single student’s attention in the room. You never knew what might come next. Mr. Constantine saw us as more than just bodies in a classroom--he saw us as actual thinkers, believers and dreamers, and he could see more potential in us than we could see in ourselves most days. Often, he would pull up a chair, sit beside us and just begin having a conversation, picking our brains on topics we may have never even considered. Generally, conversational topics included our future plans or what we would like to accomplish in an array of areas. He would listen to us, and toward the end of our conversations, I felt like there was always some piece of wisdom or sage advice he imparted. For example, I’ll never forget when he said: “protect your hearts and minds by consciously choosing who you allow to come into your lives.” Mr. Constantine was like the father we never had but always wanted. His capacity for understanding and ability to share wisdom almost daily was awe inspiring, and there was never a dull moment while you were in his presence. He knew how to get everyone to contribute to a conversation because he had a specific way of connecting with students. He might have only known you briefly, but when you talked with him, it was as if he had known you your entire life. He knew the exact thing that you needed to hear, for that exact situation you were facing. His advice was never to tell you to do any one specific thing. Instead, he viewed his role as being a guide in helping us find or discover the answers on our own--we just needed a little help along the way. Thank you Mr. Constantine for all your help.

From a Student to a Teacher
Helon Davis had “ Mr. C” for three of her four years as a Teacher here at Enloe. Helon now is going into her 9th year teaching at Enloe. To have the opportunity to work both under and with your mentor is a rare but beautiful gift in teaching. “I think what stuck out most to me as a student was just how much he cared for his students. He protected our best interests, our mental health as well as our well-being”, says Davis. Davis spoke of how Constantine was skilled at challenging students, but ensuring they were okay with the challenge and found the content relatable.

Before the school went through a renovation in 2011, Constantine’s room was in the East Building and was a place students felt comfortable eating lunch and going to after clubs and activities because his own kids were involved in sports and attended Enloe. When Davis graduated from Enloe, she attended Elon University and studied Mathematics to become a teacher. “I probably spoke to him once a week all throughout college, and he supported me in all of my college requirements. When I had to do observations or internships, I was always able to come back to him for advice”. Student teaching under Constantine’s watch guided Davis in working in a different environment. “I think he was thrilled when he heard I was coming back as a teacher, because I had planned on not doing that. I had sworn that I would never work at Enloe (slight pause), but I did”, said Davis as she laughed and admitted that after almost 10 years she’s still here. When asked what teaching attributes Constantine instilled, Davis said she learned that: “you don’t have to be cold and uncaring to be rigorous. You can be challenging with high academic standards and also be caring of a student’s social and emotional well- being”. In retrospect, Davis sees a lot of what Constantine did in the classroom (grading equity) as progressive and ahead of its time. “He was implementing those practices when I had him as a student 15 years ago. His mindset and his understanding of the purpose of education and the relationships between learning, mastery and grades was so far ahead of where the State of North Carolina, Wake County School System and even Enloe as a staff  were”, said Davis. Towards the end of our conversation with Davis, we came to a strong closing point. Constantine was not only unique, but he was also dynamic. “He contributed to the classroom and changed thousands of students' lives, but the other things he did at Enloe, through building relationships and the program for AP Chemistry and ultimately IB Chemistry, contributed to the long- term curriculum and offerings of Enloe; and this took him about 10 years to make,” said Davis. “ I think that was a huge accomplishment for him, and he continued to push and fight for that because he knew that was a great option for our students”.

From a Teacher to a Father
Speaking with Paul Constantine, Ed’s Son
Speaking with Paul Constantine, one can envision the path Ed went through in becoming a remarkable father. Ed was raised by his mother and other family members and didn’t have a close relationship with his own dad. And while Ed was experienced in the classroom, he had no frame of reference for what it would mean to be a dad. Paul remembers that Ed once expressed that to him and said that it had caused a lot of doubt in his mind when it came to raising two boys: “You know there were times in life that I just didn’t know what I was doing”. He told us once of a time he had taken me and my brother to the park, and he became upset with himself because he didn’t bring anything. He was watching all these other dads, you know, that had brought a bat or a glove, and he would think to himself: “man I don’t know what I’m doing”.
 
But Ed went into parenthood with humility and an eagerness to learn as he had everything in life. With a passion to succeed, Ed began closely watching other dads in an effort to “up his game” as Paul puts it. But what Ed might not have recognized at the time, was that to his two sons, he was already an amazing dad. That young man who left Kingston Jamaica in the 1980s, left with a simple determination -- to be in his son’s lives; and that determination alone, regardless of skill, was all that mattered. “Our dad was incredibly active and supportive in all of our athletics -- he came to every game. It’s just one of those things that he gave me and my brother, you know? There’s nothing you can do to replace that. There’s no other relationship like that especially for young black men and their fathers -- it’s something that we need”, said Paul. This relationship carried on into college as Ed attended his son’s college games, both home and away. Ed is now a grandfather; his two sons now have their own children and carry on the torch and the passion to be in every part of their lives. The cycle of good continues because of Edward Constantine.

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Quotes From Colleagues

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Emily Stout- “I met Mr. Constantine during my first year of teaching at Enloe (2016-2017). He always went out of his way to check on me during an extremely challenging year. I would be grading alone in my classroom over an hour after school ended, and Mr. Constantine would come by with a smile and plenty of advice. He told me I was already a good teacher and was going to become a great one as I learned and grew. I didn’t believe him then, but I think he was right. He believed in me at a time when I definitely didn't believe in myself, and I might not still be at Enloe if it weren't for him.

Kelly Wurtz - “Always willing to help you out. Always smiling.”

Joe Eno - “Here at Enloe, Mr. Constantine was loved by many students and by faculty. He was consistent and kind to everybody. A man of high integrity, Mr.

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Constantine provided much wisdom to all of us at Enloe, but above all he was one of the best listeners I have ever met. He will always be one of my favorite people.”

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Helon Davis - “Mr. C is one of the driving reasons why I am an educator today. I had the privilege of being his student THREE times and while he managed to teach me a little chemistry, I learned A LOT about great teaching. His mentorship throughout college and as a beginning teacher was unparalleled.

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C embodies what it means to be an Enloe Educator: high quality instruction, varied interests (how many Chem/Psych teachers do you know who also coached multiple sports?), and a willingness to do and stand up for what is best for students.”

Priscilla Chappell - “Ed Constantine popped into my world, full force with the musicality of his voice and the power and beauty of a soul that knew exactly what it was supposed to do and be in life. I was a baby teacher when we met, and he treated me with such respect and enthusiasm; I felt buoyed by each interaction with him at a time when I was fighting to learn the ropes. I learned from an old Radiolab podcast that trees in a forest are intertwined by their roots in incredible networks. Constantine was certainly a teacher propping me up in a network of roots that reached across the school, all the way to my room in 2203. Like the best educators who love interacting, guiding, joking with, shaping, and challenging the students who cross their paths, he did so at Enloe with both equanimity and a passion that filled the room and spilled out into the hallways. Constantine suffered no fools, but his mercy was deep and wide. He has continued to shape the world of teaching after leaving Enloe to lead as an admin at Green Hope, and I have no doubt that his influence ripples out in ways unimaginable, as his actions and words continue to be channeled through his students and colleagues and continue to impact those who hear and are touched by his lessons and his wisdom. Constantine, many many thanks, and I miss, we miss the heck out of you, man!!

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