Every fall and spring, members of the Mary Baldwin University men’s basketball team visit students at Bessie Weller Elementary School in Staunton.
Fall 2024 was particularly special for Bessie Weller students because the school was one of only 64 schools in Virginia to receive the Exemplar Performance School Award, one of the highest academic achievements for a school in Virginia.
Bessie Weller Elementary Principal Sandra McGrath said the school has been working with the men’s basketball team for a few years. They helped the school clear a trail nearby and the students enjoyed spending time with members of the basketball team.
“They go into different classes and work with kids,” McGrath said.
Students are comfortable reading to the basketball players.
“It’s really a different kind of vibe for the students,” McGrath said.
The players have shared with the students how they earned basketball championships.
“That message really resounded with the kids,” she said of the students understanding the importance of perseverance and hard work in reaching a goal.
According to McGrath, the players see the growth in the students between their fall and spring visits, and how the students’ reading skills have improved.
“I think all the support that we get is helpful and their support is unique,” McGrath said of the basketball players.
She said the students enjoy playing basketball with the team members and interacting with them encourages them to aspire to also attend college someday.
“It’s different than with the teachers,” McGrath said. “[The basketball players are] rock stars. The kids love them.”
When players visited Friday morning, students were coming near to the end of the first nine weeks of school and prepping for benchmark testing.
“Today is the day for them to kind of enjoy each other,” McGrath said. The students get to thank the players for their support.
MBU men’s basketball Coach Daniel Eacho has two young daughters the age of the elementary school students the team visits.
“I’m excited that we can have this impact on this age group,” Eacho said.
Going forward, the team will focus on opportunities for community engagement in Staunton and the surrounding area of MBU.
“I have a vision of establishing other relationships with organizations,” Eacho said. He mentioned the Boys & Girls Club, which he would like to have the team do a clinic with and he would also like to have team members visit local retirement homes.
Eacho said that some community members are still unaware that MBU has a men’s basketball team.
“I want to make sure they’re getting acknowledged in the community,” Eacho said.
Mannie Mullings is a freshman playing for MBU. He is from Augusta, Georgia and plans to major in cybersecurity.
“When I first came to Mary Baldwin, they just made me feel welcome,” he said of the team and the school. He said that everyone extended “a helping hand” to him if he needed anything.
Tisha Moore teaches 5th grade at Bessie Weller.
“It just means the world to our kids when they come in and show that they care,” Moore said of the players.
She said that players have told her that after visiting with students at the school they are inspired to become teachers.
Moore said her students see a connection with the community and the example the team members set for them in teamwork and determination to obtain goals.
“They’re like big brothers to these kids,” Moore said. “It’s just a phenomenal program. I hope the guys get as much from it as we do.”
Moore said she thinks the basketball players enjoy remembering what it was like when they were in elementary school and now they can be leaders for the next generation.
“It brings community into the schools,” said first-year 5th-grade teacher Abby Coppola. She said the opportunity is especially beneficial for the MBU students who come from all over Virginia to attend college in Staunton.
For 5th-grade teacher Ashley Cole, the important part of the men’s basketball players visiting Bessie Weller students is that her students gain a connection to college and understand that sports are an option for them in their futures. She said one MBU player changed his major and began student teaching after visiting Bessie Weller.
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Rebecca Barnabi
