Robert Coates

Yes

After graduating in 1973, I enrolled in the University of Alabama's Electrical Engineering program for one year before joining the U.S. Army in pursuit of the G.I. Bill to fund my College Education.

While in service, I traveled across the country but never abroad (being denied overseas transfer upon every request - there went my dream of Hawaii and it's sandy beaches). I ended up serving Headquarters, and Headquarters Command of the 101st Airborne/Air Assault Unit at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky for nearly 3 years.

Upon discharge, I again enrolled at the University of Alabama (this time with enough money to it make through). However, I changed my major to education, obtaining degrees in Elementary and Secondary Education, Educational Leadership, and School Administration.

In 1980, I began teaching in the Tuscaloosa City Schools System where I remain today (29 years). My career has taken me from classroom teacher to assistant principal of Tuscaloosa Middle School. In 1989, I became principal of Matthews Elementary School in the Tuscaloosa County District but after one year was recruited back to the Tuscaloosa City Schools District as principal of Westlawn Middle School. From there, I was promoted to principal of Central High School, a class 6A school, which became one of the top schools in the state. After three years, I was promoted to Director of Educational Programs and finally to Director of Secondary Education (Retirement is within reach).

Since entering the field of school administration, I have been offered positions in Atlanta, Georgia; South Carolina; North Carolina; Austin, Texas; and New Orleans, Louisiana to name a few, but I chose to stay and fight discrimination and injustices right here at home (Tuscaloosa). I still have a few battles left before I can retire. The State of Alabama needs a 'revival' when it comes to teaching children of color. We all know from where we came. It is now our duty, our responsibility, to ensure those coming after us, have a better chance at equality than even we enjoyed.

Just visit our old school and you can see for yourself that even in 2009 with a Black President, we still have a long way to go. As Michael Jackson sang, "Let's Make That Change!"

Did we set a record??? Against Paramount High School one cold and windy Friday afternoon, our football team faced an insurmountable task, having the ball inside the 1 yard line, 99 yards from our own goal line. Coach sent in the same play that got us into this mess in the first place. But the great vision of our center, Mose Jones, saw the lineman playing wide gaps with no cover. As we huddled, Mose told me (the quarterback), if I tap your left leg, come left straight up the middle. If I tap your right leg, come right. The middle is open. As I approached the line of scrimmage, Mose tapped my right leg, snapped the ball, and up the middle of the field I ran, 99 yards for the deciding touchdown!

Little did I know, our principal, R. K. Coates (or Dad as I called him), ran stride for stride with me, all the way to the other end of the field, his long trench coat flying in the wind!

I believe to this day, Coach Presnell never knew which play we ran but always took credit! The moral of this story is...if we had listened to Coach Presenell more...no, no, no...if Mose had called the plays back then...who knows what might have happened. How about that, Mose Jones later became and still is Coach of his high school team!