PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (January 14, 2020) – Wiston Ocoro takes on many roles as a student at Prairie View A&M University. He’s a campus leader, mentor to incoming first-year students, aspiring fashion model, and a tutor to elementary school students. The 21-year-old junior education major also has his sights set on becoming a teacher.

“My grandmother has about 20 grandchildren, and about 15 of them are younger than I am,” said the Houston native who was considered to be the “bookworm” of his family growing up. “All my aunts would drop off their children to me, and I would tutor them,” he said.

Those skills proved to be useful when he got to PVAMU.

“I’ve been involved with several mentoring organizations on campus. I’m the president of a mentoring organization called Men Achieving Leadership Excellence (M.A.L.E.), and I’m also the chief of staff for Panther Advisory Leaders, in which I serve as a role model for incoming freshmen,” he said.

During his sophomore year, Ocoro was contacted by the campus student employment office for a Title IV Federal Work-Study job.

“It was a pilot program they were trying to start with the Waller Independent School District,” he said.

The position was for a classroom specialist to help teachers with students at Jones Elementary School.

“At the time, I was still a nursing major. I did not switch to being an education major until last summer,” he said. “And, when this opportunity was presented to me, I gave it a try.

Ocoro said it was his mentor, Dr. Michael L. McFrazier, dean of Whitlowe R. Green College of Education and founder of M.A.L.E., who ultimately helped him with his career choice.

“Mr. Ocoro is, unfortunately, a rare breed,” said McFrazier. “Across the nation, there is a shortage of male teachers, especially black male teachers. But Mr. Ocoro is a male who is focused on becoming a teacher, and he is doing an outstanding job at Jones. The students, teachers, and administrators are thrilled about his participation.”

And Ocoro loves tutoring his group of fourth-grade reading students.

“We were practicing for the standardized STAAR test, and they assigned me to a smaller classroom. I taught those students different skills I’ve learned over the years that have helped me with reading comprehension,” he said. “They called me to come back this semester. This time I’m with third-grade students.”

His course work in PVAMU’s Whitlowe R. Green College of Education is producing results in his tutorial work.

“Most of the students assigned to me have behavioral issues. But I have been able to give them the attention they need to grasp the information,” he said. “I could tell, when they were in bigger classrooms with other students, they would want to show out and misbehave. When they are with me, they are calmer and can focus on their work and build different learning strategies.”

Anticipating a May 2021 graduation, Ocoro says his concentration for his major is English Language Arts and Reading (ELAR) for grade levels 4 through 8.

To learn more about PVAMU’s Whitlowe R. Green College of Education, visit www.pvamu.edu/education, or follow the college on social media at pvamu_coe.

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By Sammy G. Allen