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GREENWOOD Dist. — This April marked a significant milestone for Teach Not Punish (TNP), celebrating eight years of dedicated service to the community. TNP has been a steadfast provider of educational and family resources, making a tangible difference in the lives of many. For instance, TNP’s after-school programs have helped improve academic performance and reduce disciplinary issues among students in the district.
“I started just sharing basic resources, information with parents, information for teachers, telling them where the resources were in the community. That’s how I started on Facebook,” Estes told The Black Wall Street Times.
TNP was born from a training she attended, “Positive Behavior Interventions and Support” (PBIS), a widely recognized approach to behavior management in schools. PBIS focuses on positive reinforcement and proactive strategies to prevent behavioral issues, aligning perfectly with TNP’s mission.
With her rich experience of nearly 20 years in education, Estes has witnessed the reinforcement of the ‘school-to-prison pipeline’ in the education system. “When I was at that PBIS training, that is what really pricked my heart to teach, not punish,” Estes told The Black Wall Street Times.
She mentioned one quote by Tom Herner that stood out to her:
“If a child doesn’t know how to read, we teach”
“If a child doesn’t know how to swim, we teach”
“If a child doesn’t know how to multiply, we teach”
“If a child doesn’t know how to drive, we teach”
“If a child doesn’t know how to behave, we…….
teach?……………punish?”
“Why can’t we finish the last sentence as
automatically as we do the others?”
Transforming Discipline: Eight Years of Teach Not Punish
One week ago, TNP hosted a captivating culture and curation art exhibition tour at the Skyline Mansion in North Tulsa to commemorate its anniversary. The tour was not just a way to learn about TNP’s story, culture, and core values but an immersive experience that allowed participants to feel part of TNP’s journey over the past eight years.
As participants entered the exhibition, the first year was on display, giving the history of TNP. Estes served as the tour guide, walking people through the eight years of TNP, each representing each year of existence.
Between years two and five, Estes provided an overview of her personal life, educational history, and the development of TNP before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Estes was born in Germany and spent several of her formative years there. She moved back to the United States at age 10 and continued her education.
During years six through eight, she addresses life during the pandemic and the sustainability of TNP. Her youngest child was born just four months before the pandemic, and she wondered what direction the program would head.
“When the pandemic hit, I was like, oh, I don’t even know what I can do. All I needed was one person to say, let’s do it, or you can do it,” she told The Black Wall Street Times.
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Charting the Course: Estes’s Journey from Basketball Courts to Classrooms
In her first year after moving to Tulsa, Estes served as the Founding Behavior specialist for Greenwood Leadership Academy (GLA). She also began an academic intervention program in which high school students and members of the community tutored elementary students.
Estes played basketball growing up. She played at Booker T. Washington High School and went on to play at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College. She finished her degree at Langston University.
Estes’s educational journey began in Texas, where she was a certified special education teacher, specializing in early childhood through 12th grade and then generalist early childhood through 12th grade. Additionally, she holds certification in case management.
Her work in case management was the foundation of TNP, and she eventually relocated back to Tulsa, bringing her personal experiences and passion to the development of the organization.
“I was drawn back to Tulsa. I worked here as a case manager, where I had a commute from Texas to Tulsa for about a year, where I supported a caseload of about ten families,” Estes stated.
MacArthur Elementary gave her the opportunity she was looking for. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Teach Not Punish demonstrated resilience and adaptability. The program shifted, and she used interactive tools to engage the students in online learning. The displays in the exhibition showed artwork from her students at that time, a testament to their perseverance and the community’s unwavering support.
In July 2023, TNP’s exceptional work was recognized on a national platform. TNP was featured on Road Nation, a PBS broadcast show that travels the country to film entrepreneurs as they build their companies. The show will air on May 1, and a screening will be held at Circle Cinema. This recognition is a testament to the community’s collective efforts and the impact of TNP’s initiatives.