40 percent.

That was her likelihood of remaining trapped in the same cycle of poverty as the community around her.

In a neighborhood consumed by struggle, statistics had already written her story.

But she refused it.

AP Literature and African American Studies teacher Gabrielle Ford grew up in Georgetown, South Carolina. Despite her financial circumstances, Ford had “a beautiful childhood.”

“As a child, I wasn’t privy to the challenges that my parents were facing,” Ford said. “It wasn’t until I got older that I realized ‘Oh, wow. We really didn’t have a whole lot.’ I was constantly surrounded by loved ones, so I always felt very blessed.”

Ford credits her mother for shielding her from the hardship her family faced.

“I never saw the agitation that comes with poverty,” Ford said. “Looking back on it, I’m shocked that my mother raised four children while also caring for my grandmother our whole life.”

Provided by Gabrielle Ford

Ford takes a selfie with her mother. Thanks to her mother, her childhood “seemed like everything,” according to Ford.

Ford’s mother took care of two households on a single income. She dropped out of college in her first semester to take care of Ford’s grandmother, sacrificing her education for her family.

“For my mom, education was so important,” Ford said. “Although she was forced to drop out of school, she always stressed the importance of getting an education to her kids.”

Given her lack of money for quality schooling, Ford said the odds for success were stacked against her.

“Growing up where I did, I should not have been able to accomplish what I [have],” Ford said. “I’m very grateful because a lot of my peers who I grew up with are still trapped in that cycle of poverty.”

Her motivation? To not become the person that the statistics said she would.

“The idea of struggle didn’t appeal to me,” Ford said. “I wanted to go as far away as I could from the alcoholism, drugs and lack of education I grew up around. I saw what I did not want to become, and that’s what I led with.”

Ford’s childhood was also an inspiration for her future career. In second grade, her desire to become a teacher arose.

“My teacher would have me help grade papers,” Ford said. “I don’t know what she saw in me, but I remember her telling me, ‘Oh, you’re going to be a teacher.’ I realized [that education] helped me escape struggle by encouraging me to work hard. It saved my life, and I wanted to be able to do that for others. ”

Fast forward ten years, Ford’s career aspirations took a different turn. At Bennett College, one of two historically Black colleges for women, Ford decided to pursue a degree in Journalism and Media Studies.

“I ran away from education in college because I didn’t find the early mornings and repetitive schedule appealing,” Ford said. “I’ve always loved writing, and as a journalist, I could write, travel and be in control of my time. I had always been the delegated, unpaid writer in my family and my community, so the idea of being able to publish my works and be paid for it became the goal.”

Though strongly committed to her major for three years, in Ford’s senior year, the media landscape changed.

“My senior year was during the influx of social media — suddenly everything [was] on the internet,” Ford said. “Journalism, as a whole, was on a decline and the need for journalists also declined. But I still had to pay my bills.”

Unsure of what her future looked like, Ford decided to apply for Teach for America, a non-profit organization that trains college graduates to teach in high-need schools with the goal of reducing educational inequality.

Ford was one of 5,000 applicants accepted out of 44,000 total. Though she received all the training resources, nothing prepared her for the environment she would be placed in.

“Teach for America is a program that I would recommend to anyone; however, it’s not for the weak,” Ford said. “They place you in schools that are in high need, so it really prepares you to see struggle. It opens your eyes to the disparities within public education.”

Ford began her teaching career at JW Parker Middle School in North Carolina, where she taught eighth grade English for four years.

“It was a very rough campus and a low performing school,” Ford said. “The students I was teaching had not met the minimum rate of progress in English for about 10 years. In my first year there, I got my students to exceed it.”

According to Ford, that was her proudest moment in education.

“I once had a student in eighth grade that told me on the first day of school that he couldn’t read,” Ford said. “I made it a personal goal to ensure that by the end of the school year, he would never have to have that conversation with another teacher. I worked with him all throughout that year, and he ended up having the highest growth percentage in reading out of the entire class.”

Provided by Gabrielle Ford

Ford stands in her classroom with a bouquet of flowers. They were given to her by a student who calls Ford their "favorite teacher.”

Though working at the school was “demanding,” it was an environment Ford was familiar with.

“I grew up at a school that was majority African American, and it was a high poverty-stricken school,” Ford said. “Despite the struggle, there was a sense of community that made it work.”

Although Ford never managed to take the Teach for America exam to stay in the program, to the school, it didn’t matter.

“When my first batch of students improved so much, my district said even if I didn’t meet my Teach for American requirements, they still wanted me back,” Ford said. “When Teach for America realized that the district was offering me a contract, they fought to keep me, and I was able to complete my contract. That was an anomaly.”

However, when Ford became an official employee of the Nash County Public Schools District, she needed to pass a Pearson test to get her license as a teacher in North Carolina. Ford was three points from passing.

Although upset by her scores, Ford realized her results were part of a larger issue.

“Most of the people that Teach for America hired are white and Asian teachers, and they were passing the test with no difficulty,” Ford said. “Black teachers like myself found it really difficult to pass the tests, yet statistically we were the most effective in the classrooms. It showed me there is a huge educational gap in academia. We’re giving standardized tests to all demographics, but we’re not giving all demographics the resources to pass those standardized tests.”

After four years of teaching in North Carolina, Ford moved to Texas in 2019. She taught at both Klein Forest High School and Wheatley High School before moving to Bellaire. Coming from under-resourced schools, she saw a big difference when she moved.

“At campuses like Bellaire, parents tell their kids to focus on school while they have everything else covered,” Ford said. “At my previous campuses, parents [were] just not able to dedicate all their time to providing for their kids. There were times when I would have to order groceries for families, attend court hearings and advocate for students in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings alongside parents. So when I left Wheatley, there was a part of me that felt I was doing those kids a disservice.”

Provided by Gabrielle Ford

Ford poses with a Wheatley sign at the HISD convocation. This marked the beginning of the Texas Education Agency takeover.

During Ford’s first year at Bellaire, she served as the college-prep English 3 teacher. She was asked to move up to Advanced Placement (AP) this year.

“I enjoy working with students and seeing growth, but I reached a point in my career where I really just want to teach content,” Ford said. “I knew with the AP kids, I could just do what I love and also provide the rigor. I’m able to challenge kids instead of trying to save them.”

For senior Ellie Loor, Ford’s effectiveness in the classroom is clear as she describes Ford as “very organized.”

“[Ford’s] class feels completely different from other English classes because everything has a real purpose,” Loor said. “Nothing ever feels like busy work, every assignment connects to something meaningful that actually helps me think deeper about myself.”

According to English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher Gregory Gaylor, that dedication to helping her students succeed is seen even with her colleagues.

“Working with Ms. Ford is a rewarding experience,” Gaylor said. “She is the type of colleague who not only contributes her ideas but values and uplifts the ideas of others. She shares resources, advice and encouragement freely, always with the goal of helping others succeed.”

Having come so far in education, Ford is ready to move onto a different career path — law school. She signed up for a Kamala Harris phone banking event where she met an attorney who owned her own law firm. That attorney offered Ford an opportunity to shadow in her office, where Ford’s interest in law “truly sparked.”

Provided by Gabrielle Ford

Ford takes a picture with Judge Lina Hidalgo, the first female judge of Harris county. Ford was at the phone banking event for the Kamala Harris campaign.

Just like how Ford saw a racial gap in the education space, she saw the same in law.

“I’ve always been so empowered by women, and in the past couple years, I have met the most amazing female attorneys,” Ford said. “Black women only make up about 5% of all attorneys. There’s not many of us. With the skills that I have, I think law is an area where I would absolutely flourish.”

Her love for education still echoes in her desire to pursue education law.

“I want to continue making an impact in education, and education law allows me to do that,” Ford said. “It’s a lot to teach and study for law school. I can do education all right, but [law] is almost like learning a new language. That’s another reason why I am wanting to step out of education: there is no challenge. I feel like I can come and teach with my eyes closed, with my hands behind my back. The love is still there, but the challenge isn’t.”

Through the hardship in her teaching journey, one thing keeps her coming back: impact.

“Teaching is a very special job, but you don’t really clock out,” Ford said. “It can become overwhelming, because I go to bed as a teacher, I wake up as a teacher. But my friends are in a plethora of jobs, and none of them are able to make the impact teachers make daily.”

Provided by Gabrielle Ford

Ford prepares to teach class on a Friday morning. Ford was the college-prep English 3 teacher before transitioning to AP English Literature and Composition.

According to Ford, it is that impact that gives her fulfillment.

“I have students that I taught 10 years ago who still reach out, who still let me know how they’re doing,” Ford said. “There’s not a whole lot of careers that can really give you that amount of happiness. I’m making a difference, and people depend on that. People need that.”