Today’s R2S: Teacher Adopts Unruly Student

Chelsea Haley, 24, joined Teach for America in 2013 to make a difference in a low-income school. She met Jerome Robinson while teaching at an elementary school in Baton Rouge. He was a 12 year old student at the time who was so unruly that she almost quit teaching altogether. Through their teaching session the 2 formed an unlikely bond that was so strong other teachers would send Jerome to her classroom when he was acting out, purely because he listened to her.

One night, while she was sleeping, Haley had a dream where she adopted Jerome and woke up laughing because the idea was preposterous but the thought for some reason never left her mind. You see, Jerome and his one-year-old brother lived in poverty with their grandparents and birth mother, who shared care for the two boys. The family was going through tough times after the recent loss of two family members.

According to Sunny Skyz, One day while Jerome was taking a test he asked if he could live with her which inspired her to invite his mom over for dinner. When she explained that her time with Teach for America was coming to an end and she would be moving back to Georgia, Jerome's mom asked if she could take both Jerome and his little brother with her.

Within months she adopted the 2 boys and now Jerome is thriving, joining the honor roll at his school since living with Haley.