Bryan Bassette
Elmhurst United Middle School
Oakland, CA USA
"The part of the job that I love is knowing that I am influencing minds in a positive way—not only for their success, but for the success of our people and the success of our community."
Career Roadmap
Bryan's work combines: Education, Sports, and Teaching / Mentoring
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
My parents are both educators and my mom encouraged me to do the same. At the time, I had no intentions of becoming a teacher. I did not think teaching was for me. After my dreams of becoming a professional athlete were broken, I started coaching and eventually progressed to teaching. And I loved it! Teaching is about relationship-building and mentorship, which are the things I really liked about coaching. All along, I told my parents I'd never teach, but here I am now and I love what I do.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Sociology
California State University, East Bay
Graduate Degree
Education, General
University of California, Berkeley
Life & Career Milestones
I've taken a lot of twists and turns
1.
I grew up in Oakland, California, and was a student-athlete all throughout school.
2.
Both of my parents were educators, but I had no intentions of following in their footsteps—I dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player.
3.
I didn’t end up getting drafted and was no longer a student-athlete—without sports, I lost my drive, stopped applying myself, and was academically disqualified from college.
4.
I started coaching high school baseball and found that I loved mentoring and building relationships with the kids.
5.
I went back to school for my bachelor’s degree and started substitute teaching—once I saw firsthand that teaching was about relationship-building and mentorship, I was hooked.
6.
I started teaching at Piedmont Avenue Elementary with the Office of African American Male Achievement—I was the first to pilot the program for elementary school students.
7.
Once I had my own classroom and was able to infuse cultural and social awareness into my curriculum, I really fell in love with teaching.
8.
I taught for seven years before moving into education administration—I’m currently the assistant principal at Elmhurst United Middle School.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
I'll never be a teacher. Teaching is not for me.
How I responded:
My parents are both educators and my mom encouraged me to do the same. At the time, I had no intentions of becoming a teacher. I did not think teaching was for me. After my dreams of becoming a professional athlete were broken, I started coaching and eventually progressed to teaching. And I loved it! Teaching is about relationship-building and mentorship, which are the things I really liked about coaching. All along, I told my parents I'd never teach, but here I am now and I love what I do.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
When I wasn't professionally drafted and was no longer a student athlete, I lost my drive, started doing poorly, and was academically disqualified. Coaching baseball helped me find purpose again. I went back to school and earned my B.A.