LONDON MOORE, 27
Principal, THRIVE Baton Rouge
In her first year as principal of THRIVE, London Moore achieved some rather dramatic results: She grew the boarding school’s performance score an additional 12 points, and engaged teachers in some of the strongest Common Core training in the state. The next challenge she has set for herself: making sure that every student in THRIVE’s first graduating class is accepted at a four-year university with substantial scholarships.
Inspiring book: Our America: Life and Death on the South Side of Chicago
This book paints an exceptional picture of what it is like to grow up in the ghettos of America. The book shines light onto the struggles and triumphs of an America that is often separate and forgotten, the America that I grew up in and the America that many of my students have spent their lives growing up in. It’s a reminder for me of the urgency with which I must approach each day.
Major professional accomplishments: Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director, Ghana Educational Collaborative; Park Ridge Elementary School Teacher of the Year 2009-2010
Volunteer and community involvement: America Achieves Fellow, America Achieves Lead Fellow, Student Achievement Partners Fellow, Tufts University Alumni Council
PROFESSIONAL
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? I had a stranger obsession with Lurlene McDaniel’s One Last Wish novels. I decided at the age of nine that I would be a pediatric oncologist. I held onto this dream until I realize that this occupation involved working with blood on a regular basis and realized quickly that I was not equipped for that.
What was your first job, and what did you learn from it? My mother made it very clear that the day that I was able to work, I would be doing exactly that. Since I did not have a plethora of marketable skills at the age of 15, I was thrilled to get a job at Hollywood Video. I was a stocker, cashier and cleaned the store. This job taught me the importance of being able to mop a floor. It is important to be willing to do whatever it takes on a job and never think that you are above any task.
What is your favorite place for a business lunch in Baton Rouge? I am utterly and absolutely in love with Bistro Byronz. It has a perfect combination of amazing food and atmosphere.
What do you consider your greatest achievement? The progress that my students have made when I was a teacher in Baker, their progress during my time so far as THRIVE’s principal, and my students’ progress during my time as the co-executive director of the Ghana Educational Collaborative.
The old saying goes, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Specifically, what are you “being” to make Baton Rouge better? For me, “being” the change is having the great privilege of being an educator.
What ritual do you do to get pumped up before a big meeting, presentation or pitch? I read over my notes three times, listen to World’s Greatest and give myself a mental pep talk.
What has been the most fulfilling moment in your career so far? It must have been the moment when my entire fourth-grade class found out that they had passed the LEAP test together. It was a moment that was a symbol not just of triumph but also of the importance of family.
What was your professional aha moment? The moment when I realized how important it is to show up. I saw a student’s behavior transform overnight when I showed up to his student football game and sat on his steps talking to his family for a week.
How many times will you try something before admitting it doesn’t work? I don’t do well with defeat. I will try things an infinite number of times because I have a deep belief that there must be an answer. I do not accept that something worth doing cannot be done.
What is your best productivity hack? Rising and working before the sun- I get my best work done before 7:00am. I usually am up at 4 a.m. I have several sold hours of uninterrupted work time.
What did you learn the hard way? How to properly plunge a toilet.
What does your job entail that would shock customers or clients if they knew about it? You really do feel like a parent in my job. I remember the first year I was a principal being shocked by how much vomit I had to clean up when kids got sick.
TECHNOLOGY
Mac or PC? MAC without question.
What’s your preferred mode of communication: text or phone call? Phone call.
How low will you allow your remaining battery life to get (in %) before you have an anxiety attack? 20%
How many unread messages are in your inbox right now? 0
What app gets you through the day? CNN
Are you quick to adapt to new tech, or did you hang on to that flip phone way after it became obsolete? Though I still have fond memories of my flip phone, I am fairly quick to adapt to new technology.
PERSONALITY
How many times do you hit the snooze button? Once at the most. I am usually up before my alarm goes off.
Breakfast at home? Breakfast on the go? Breakfast at your desk? No breakfast at all? Breakfast at home. I love making breakfast in the morning.
Is the glass half empty or half full? What’s in the glass? Glass half full. Even on your worst day, there are amazing things about life to be grateful for.
If you could build a statue downtown, who or what would it represent? A Sankofa. It is an Andinkra symbol from the Akan people in Ghana that means “reach back and get it” or “go back to your roots.” We have such a rich history in Baton Rouge. I believe it is always important to remind ourselves where we come from.
What’s your motto? It’s not about the destination. It’s about the journey.
When did you realize you had grown up? When people started calling me Ms. Moore. The first year I was teaching, I still found it strange to hear Ms. Moore rather than London everyday at work.
Which historical figure do you most identify with? Maya Angelou.
Which living person do you most admire? Mary Jones, my grandmother. She is everything I hope to be and I owe everything that I am to her.
What is your greatest extravagance? Whole Foods!
What trend do you really wish would come back? Mood rings and leg warmers.
If you could choose your age forever, what age would you choose and why? 30. You are old enough to have learned form your 20s but young enough that it is still ok to make a few mistakes.
What is your favorite journey? The journey that I make every year to Ghana, West Africa. It is my second home and I look forward to that plane ride every year.
On what occasion do you lie? I am pretty honest in general. I have a rule that the truth is always better than a lie.
What is your greatest regret? Having never lived abroad for over a year yet. I think having that experience is one that everyone should have.
When and where were you happiest? I believe that happiness is a choice. I have been lucky to have found genuine happiness growing up in Los Angeles, attending college in Boston, study abroad and working in Ghana and being a part of the community in Baton Rouge.
Which talent or superpower would you most like to have and why? The ability to read minds.
If you worked for the CIA and needed a top-secret alias, what would yours be? Olivia Pope
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I would learn to sleep past 8 a.m. on the weekends.
What’s your most treasured possession? My photo albums.
If you could live anywhere on this planet and take everything that you love with you, where would you choose to live and why? Ghana, West Africa. I love Ghana. It is truly a second home and I would love to live there for awhile at some point in my life.
What do you most value in your friends? My friends are absolutely my family. I love and appreciate their loyalty and honesty. They are the best mirrors that I could ever hold up to exam myself.
What do you miss most about the ’90s? The amazing music, specifically the boy bands!
If you had to be a teacher of something, what would you teach? I was a math and science teacher. I love teaching both but specifically my heart is in teaching math.
What is your theme song? This is a little embarrassing but Katy Perry’s “Roar” or Beyoncé’s “I Was Here.”
Who would play you in a movie? I can only hope that Kerry Washington would play me.
If you could go back in time 20 years, what advice would you give yourself? Don’t ever turn down opportunities out of fear. You will regret more what you did not do than what you did.
What makes you laugh every time you think about it? This is difficult to narrow down. My students make me laugh everyday, but there is a certain student who has the most distinct laugh. Every time I hear it, I burst out laughing.
Who’s the most famous celebrity you’ve ever met? Probably Angelina Jolie.
LOOKING AHEAD
What’s the next challenge you have planned? Making sure that every student in THRIVE’s first graduating class gets into four year universities with substantial scholarships.
Three things on your bucket list: Skydiving, traveling to Europe, creating a worthwhile iPhone app.
What would be your advice for future Forty Under 40 honorees? Continuously do what you are passionate about with a relentless drive.
Do you plan to be in the Capital Region five years from now? Yes, I do.
Why have you chosen to make your home in the Capital Region? Baton Rouge is home. You will find no better community in the world to be a part of. People genuinely care about each other and there is a desire in this city to continuously better ourselves.
