Tommy Delaney

Tom started teaching in public schools in 1969 because he needed the job. Twenty-eight years later, he travels 160 miles a day to educate incarcerated juveniles because the job needs him. He promises students that no matter from what distance their noble dreams beckon, they can get there from his classroom; he uses successful businessmen who also grew up in rough neighborhoods to share how they “got there from here.” Delaney encourages students to submit entries to REACHING OUT, a literary magazine published by his English/Journalism class and circulated to schools from Mexico to Canada; he also encourages them to participate in public speaking and in plays that depict psychological and environmental barriers they are hurdling to reach lofty goals. Once a year they take their productions on the road to schools in tough neighborhoods in an attempt to reach others who may be thinking about getting involved with crime and violence.