Meet Anthony Johnson: Teacher of the Year. Rebel ‘Mayor.’ High School Dropout.
July 2, 2019
By: Kristin Leong
Source: EdSurge
Families have moved their homes to Salisbury, North Carolina to live in the school district where Anthony Johnson teaches 4th and 5th grade on the slim chance that their children will be enrolled in his class.
But no one who knew him back when he was a student, including Anthony, predicted that he would rise to become a model of education leadership and innovation.
Anthony hated school as a child. He threw chairs in classrooms. He fought with students and teachers. He failed fourth grade, seventh grade, eighth grade and ninth grade before being kicked out during his second attempt at freshman year. While asking him to leave school, the principal told Anthony that he’d be better off getting his GED and learning a trade.