Shaker
Schools
Q & A: Brittany Webb
14 SUMMER 2020 | WWW.SHAKER.LIFE
You’re a math teacher now, but
were you always a math person?
Math always came easily to me, but
it wasn’t until I had an independent
study in math my senior year that
I realized I was good at it. My teacher,
Mr. Slovikovski showed me that I had
a gift that I needed to nurture because
math wasn’t something that came easily
to everyone. I remember that he was just
throwing whatever he could at me to
see what I could do. He was a huge part
of shaping my direction in life. Prior to
working with him, I didn’t know what
I was going to do after high school. Mr.
Slovikovski helped me realize that there
was something I could do. I owe a lot of
where I am today to him.
Today, it sounds like you’re helping
students in Woodbury Rising Stars
do what Mr. Slovikovski did for you.
I hope so. I started Woodbury Rising
Stars during the 2016-17 school year.
It was my second year of teaching at
Shaker and at that time, I had been
teaching only enriched math classes.
The classes were great, but there were
so few Black students. It was hard for
#AIMSHAKER
By Jennifer Kuhel
One of Brittany Webb’s first memories of her move to Shaker Heights as a middle
school student in the late 1990s was how quickly she found someone who was like
her and who was willing to reach out in kindness. It’s a memory that would shape
how she viewed her adoptive hometown and is among the reasons she decided
to make Shaker Heights the place where she lives, works, and wants to make a
difference.
Today, the 2002 graduate of Shaker Heights High School is a sixth-grade math
teacher at Woodbury Elementary School, where she created the Woodbury Rising Stars
Enrichment Program to increase the participation by Black male students in advanced
math classes. She is also on the board of directors of the Shaker Schools Foundation.
What brought you to Shaker Heights as a teenager?
I was born in Indianapolis and stayed there until 1995. I loved it there. My school
was within walking distance, we had a nice house, my teachers were great, it really
was a wonderful experience.
Then, we moved to another Cleveland suburb and I was one of only three Black
females in my entire grade. That was hard. And it didn’t help that I had a Southern
accent. I didn’t want to sound different, so I tried to change. The girls around me
could tell I was trying to change, so they weren’t all that into me. My mom was
working downtown and wanted to move closer to the city. Since she grew up in the
Lee-Harvard area, she decided to look at Shaker Heights. It was a happy medium
because it was closer to her family and to her work and there was more diversity.
What were your first impressions of Shaker?
I remember my first day riding the bus to the Middle School. I didn’t know anyone
except for two girls in my neighborhood. When I got on the bus, I remember the
driver looking at me like “Who are you?” and the girls explaining that I was new.
When we got to the Middle School, they walked me to the office and showed me
around. The two girls represented what I love most about Shaker: that almost
instantly, kids can find someone to identify with. I’ve been in Shaker ever since.
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