ONEIL BARNABY
FOUNDER/DIRECTOR
Oneil Barnaby was born in Brooklyn and raised in Maryland. He graduated from Archbishop Carroll high school in DC and received his Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Mount Saint Mary’s University. He currently resides in Northern New Jersey. Mr. Barnaby is a firm believer in black empowerment. This principle is the driving force behind his actions. He has two younger brothers. His mother is Jamaican and his father is Panamanian. He was a student-athlete growing up, participating in basketball, football, soccer, lacrosse and track and field. Upon completing his post-secondary education he worked as a receiving manager at a department store, then as a mail carrier.
Mr. Barnaby’s parents stressed education as his GPA average was a 3.5 and is a member of the National Honors Society. He has worked at Huntington learning center for 5 years.
Athletically, Mr. Barnaby’s biggest accomplishment was winning the Championship of America Race at the Penn Relays in 2004. This allowed him to receive a track scholarship and compete collegiately. This unique knowledge allows him to assist other college-bound student-athletes to pursue their athletic careers. The Black Math Academy is the next project that he wants to initiate and see to fruition.
Building rapport is sacrosanct to building a bond between teachers and students. I like to be dynamic in engaging with my students. I also like to relate their questions to current and real-world situations. At the same time, there must be a clear distinction between teachers and students.
This is the flipside of the ‘passion for knowledge’ coin. Passion is like a communicable disease. Its infections nature spreads to surrounding bodies. The children see this and are more likely to emulate.
You cannot teach what you do now know. Knowledge is the foundation behind any action. We want our students to be the smartest people in the room. Being intelligent is cool, being stupid is not.