A holistic approach to counseling is the key to success for Richmond Public Schools Teacher of the Year Rahmah T. Johnson.

“I love my children. I love my students. I love education.”

That’s Ms. Johnson’s constant refrain as she pours her efforts daily into the students she interacts with and counsels at Thomas Jefferson High School.

Named last week as RPS’ top educator for 2020, Ms. Johnson wants students systemwide to grow and prosper and become great citizens. She wants them to develop life and professional skills that will take them to uncharted possibilities.

To fulfill that goal, Ms. Johnson, a nationally certified counselor, trains other RPS school counselors to undertake an approach understanding the complete child as well as how to form an open bond of honesty, understanding and caring.

“Ms. Johnson is the prime and perfect example of an RPS educator because she teaches with love, leads with love and serves with love,” said Superintendent Jason Kamras in presenting Ms. Johnson with the award during a surprise visit to her home last Friday.

Richmond School Board officials and Mayor Levar M. Stoney joined in the surprise.

Ms. Johnson’s treatment of students comes from both positive and unfortunate experiences throughout her life. She says she did not receive the same type of caring and counseling she tries to provide her students when she attended Kellam High School in Virginia Beach.

A native of Orange, N.J., Ms. Johnson lived with her grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. James T. Magwood, who wanted to move the family to a slower and quieter community and settled on Virginia Beach.

Ms. Johnson attended junior high school in the resort city and graduated from Kellam High School. Both her junior high and high schools were predominantly Caucasian and Asian with few African-American students, she recalls. The schools were not as diverse as her educational experience in New Jersey, she says.

“I can’t remember the names of any of my counselors, who only gave us information about colleges and standardized test schedules,” she remembers. “They were very hands off and didn’t do a lot of personal interacting with us.”

Her grandparents helped her through the college admissions and scholarship process. The Magwoods, she says, scheduled time for her to study for college entrance exams, fill out college applications and apply for scholarships. They were hands on, she says, and discussed her progress.

The Magwoods laid the foundation for the experience she wanted her students to have in high school. That contrasting experience, between her high school counselors and her grandparents, was a building block to her approach to developing and teaching her peers to become holistic, loving and effective high school counselors.

Her career ascent to receiving the prestigious Teacher of the Year honor has not been easy. Upon graduating from Virginia State University, where she earned a bachelor’s in sociology in 1999 and a master’s in school counseling in 2001, Ms. Johnson returned to Virginia Beach and worked in a preschool program for two years.

She then moved to King and Queen Central High School in King and Queen County to start her high school counseling career.

Following that, she moved to Richmond Public Schools, where she worked for 10 years before moving to the counseling staff at Thomas Jefferson High School four years ago.

“I am always thinking of new and innovative ways to be different with our students,” Ms. Johnson says.

She believes and practices leadership every day with students and faculty.

Cherita Sears, principal of Thomas Jefferson High School, calls Ms. Johnson “bossy,” adding, “She keeps the faculty on their toes.”

“She is out there every single day making sure our students, even during the coronavirus crisis, are OK and doing well,” Ms. Sears says. “She is always thinking of ways to do more for our students.”

The coronavirus has taken its tolls on schools, which have been shut down statewide under executive order through the end of the academic year to curb the spread of COVID-19. Teachers are challenged to adjust, moving from personal interaction with students to staying connected via technology.

“Social media is a challenge,” says Ms. Johnson. “Because of the social separation, I can’t detect non-verbal cues or do an emotional temperature check to see how students are doing,” she said.

“I can read people’s emotions without them even saying a word,” she continues. “Now I can’t hone in on students’ social, emotional and health needs to make sure they are OK.”

Despite the present pandemic, Ms. Johnson has a bright outlook for her own future and that of her students.

“I want to help students become who they aspire to become while overcoming obstacles,” Ms. Johnson says. “I want to plant seeds for others coming behind today’s students I counsel and encounter every day,” she says. “This is the driving force and motivation behind my success as an educator.”

Meet Richmond’s top educator and this week’s Personality,

Rahmah T. Johnson:

Latest accomplishment: Richmond Public Schools 2020 Teacher of the Year.

Date and place of birth: Feb. 2 in Orange, N.J.

Current residence: Richmond’s North Side.

Alma maters: Bachelor’s in sociology, Virginia State University, 1999; master’s in school counseling, VSU, 2001; and educational specialist in counseling leadership, University of West Alabama, 2013.

Family: Brother, Shariff Johnson, and eight nieces and nephews.

Occupation: Professional school counselor, Thomas Jefferson High School.

How long I’ve been a counselor: From 2003 to the present.

Reaction to top teacher award news: Flabbergasted, awe and shock.

How I got the news: I was surprised by the superintendent, the mayor, my principal and chair of the School Board at my front door.

Why I became a counselor: I wanted a career that would allow me to give love, be passionate and provide genuine care like I witnessed growing up.

My counseling philosophy: To foster learning, build knowl- edge, skills and abilities to provide a strong foundation that is rewarding and meaningful to my students. I believe that we are motivated by our past and not victims of it, and that we, as individuals, determine our own unique style of life.

Describe how teaching with students has continued during the COVID-19 shutdown: The buildings are physically closed but learning must continue. Although in a different setting, the children are still being challenged academically through online learning platforms.

Challenges of teaching from home: Not being able to read the non-verbal cues from my students, engaging students.

Three teaching strategies you use to help students as they adjust to online/distance learning: Helping them to maintain a routine/schedule, holding them accountable and ensuring that they remain organized.

Likely long-term changes in education as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic: Re-examine how we deliver instruction and how we assess learning.

Technology now means: Full integration of technology at home and at school.

What’s needed going forward: Meeting the social and emotional needs of our students virtually.

Plans for the next academic year: Unknown at the moment, but I look forward to being with my babies again.

Advice to aspiring counselors: Build relationships with your students and families. Practice self-care. Always focus on the whole child. Advocate for your students. Stay abreast of current educational trends.

Role of parents in learning process, especially now from home: You will always be your child’s first teacher. Continue to support and encourage them. Be involved. Take an active role in your child’s education. Talk to your children and not at them. Ask probing questions.

Biggest challenge facing students today: Maintaining a healthy mental being.

How this challenge impacts schoolwork: You can’t check for understanding. You can’t re-teach a concept. You can’t be in their presence and you can’t hug them.

A good counselor is: An advocate, a leader and is intentional in their practice.

A good student is: A visionary — seeing their future selves and working toward accomplishing their goals.

How I start the day: With devotion, meditation and prayer.

A perfect day for me is: Meeting the needs of my students daily.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: Sing and dance — in my home — because I am not a novice.

Kindergarten taught me: That learning is fun.

A quote that inspires me: “To the world you may be one per- son, but to one person, you may be the world” – Dr. Seuss

How I unwind: Exercise. Talk to my family.

At the top of my “to-do” list: Always be present.

Person who influenced me the most: My grandmother.

Book that influenced me the most: “Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison.

What I’m reading now: “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.

Next goal: To pursue my doctoral degree and possibly begin to teach on a collegiate level.