Is lifelong learning the key to success? This Detroit teacher says yes

This story is published as part of Planet Detroit’s 2025 Spring Neighborhood Reporting Lab, supported by The Kresge Foundation, to train community-based writers in profile writing. This year’s participants will focus on highlighting grassroots leaders driving positive change in Metro Detroit.

“You don’t want to pick up anything heavier than a pencil.” 

Deborah Jenkins got this warning from her father when she was a girl. Her dad worked 12-hour days at Ford Motor Company. And he taught his daughter that she could have a “high quality life” with determination and hard work. 

Today, Jenkins strives to impart her father’s lessons to children at Detroit Merit Charter Academy. As a teacher, she has a deep love for children, calling them “a blessing from God.” But she is also motivated by her own ambitions, both inside and away from her classroom. 

Her weekdays are typically filled with early mornings and excited children. On the day of this interview, she’s in her east side home enjoying the last few days of spring break. Soon she’ll return to the classroom, where she is helping children stay on track.

‘Parenting has changed’

A Detroit native, Jenkins has lived in the Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood for most of her life. Searching for work in her community over 20 years ago, Jenkins said she found her way to education. She was first a school library manager, working in three metro Detroit schools over her career.

Keeping school libraries running gave her joy, and she took pride in helping children navigate libraries and enjoy reading. “My favorite event was the book fair,” Jenkins said. “Back in the day, you could get so much with a dollar!”

After years of working in the school system, Jenkins took a break — and quickly became restless. Realizing she had more to give, she wasn’t ready to relax just yet.

Before the end of that year, Jenkins returned to work, this time as a substitute teacher.  

Covering classes when teachers are absent gives her the opportunity to bond with the students. She offers emotional support, comforting children when they’re down or celebrating their accomplishments. Last month, she watched one of her students receive four awards for their attendance and academics. 

Jenkins also notices their struggles. “Some of them are skipping breakfast,” she said, adding that inadequate food can also throw off a child’s focus. “You can’t drive a car with no gas,” she said.

Jenkins said she strives to take a gentle approach with students facing obstacles. “I hug them and let them know it’s going to be OK.” 

The best solution for children is a collaboration between parents and teachers, she said.

“It should be mandatory that you participate in your child’s education,” she said. “Because if you don’t, they are subject to fall between the cracks.” 

She suggests a return to parent-teacher associations. In past years, school-based PTAs met regularly for discussions and decisions on academics, extracurricular activities, and school policy.

“The children have changed because parenting has changed,” Jenkins said.

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Leading by example with lifelong education

Jenkins said her grandparents instilled values shaped by history and their lives in Alabama. She remembers attending Sunday service with them at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, which was the site of a 1963 Ku Klux Klan bombing. Four school girls were killed in the tragedy. It made news around the world and brought to light violent racism in the southern U.S. 

“They knew that education was the only thing that could get you out of poverty,” Jenkins said. “If the parents today are not prioritizing education, what chance do the kids stand?”

Affectionately called “GG” by her grandchildren and great grandchildren, Jenkins said she makes education a part of their visits.

“When you come over here, you have to study,” she said. “You can watch TV, but you’re going to be reading for a couple hours of the day.”

Leading by example, Jenkins said she dedicates herself to education, including her own. In addition to certifications in cosmetology and truck driving, Jenkins has also had military training in the U.S. Army. She has a master’s degree in criminal justice and is planning to pursue a doctorate.

And when she’s not working, she enjoys swimming or singing karaoke. 

Jenkins does not see a need to slow down anytime soon. “That’s just not me,” she said. “When I get tired, I will sit down, but until then I’m going to keep it moving.”

Alaina White, a teacher at Detroit Merit Academy, describes Jenkins as the life of the party.

“I always feel like I could be living life a little bit more when I interact with her. She’s always telling us, ‘live your life and don’t be tied down. You’re so young!’ She’s the person that’s going to make you live.” 

Jenkins keeps her focus on children: “Kids have a vitality and innocence to them,” she said.

Her greatest hope is that children and their families make use of learning opportunities in front of them, she said.

“If you’re not taking advantage of them, what are you doing?”