ROCKINGHAM — Mrs. Ruth Perry Watkins, 98, of Rockingham, passed away Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021 at her home in Rockingham.
She was born April 10, 1922 in the little Wake County town of Wendell to the late William and Josephine Jones Perry.
Although she had only a vague memory of her father, who died when she was just 2 and a half years old, she had a very vivid memory of sharing a happy childhood in a big, but closely knit family.
Mrs. Watkins’ four siblings Betsy Perry McLain, Benjamin Perry, William C. Perry, Roosevelt Perry and foster daughter Dorothy Williams Whyte all preceded her in death.
When Ruth was about 4 and a half years old, her mother married a Baptist minister, the Rev. Eddie Mial, who also had five children.
Mrs. Watkins grew up during the Depression era. It was years later, after she became a history student, that she realized that like most families of that time, her family was economically poor. However, she and her family never felt under-privileged. She and her siblings knew they were loved and their parents trained them to work for what they got.
The year before she was to enter school, the family moved to Bound Brook, New Jersey. She began and completed her public education in that little central Jersey town. She attended Robert Morris Elementary School in South Bound Brook and graduated with honors from Bound Brook High School.
Mrs. Watkins’ parents had little opportunity for formal education but they certainly impressed upon the minds of their children the importance of education, work and service.
It was during her high school days that Ruth became interested in teaching. Her high school history teacher, Lewis Paul Todd, apparently ignited her interest in education. Mr. Todd later wrote the U.S. History book that was adopted by the state of North Carolina as the basic history text for 11th-graders.
She also had the example of her older sister, Mrs. Betsy McLean. Her love for school was reflected in the good grades she always brought home and long before she reached high school, she would realize that her goal was to become a teacher someday. In childhood play, with other children, she always managed to be the teacher. When there were no others with home to play, her brothers became her students. Ruth always credited three teachers with modeling and mentoring her in her quest to become a teacher: her high school history teacher, her college French teacher and her sister.
Encouraged by her mother, Ruth decided to go south to college, aided financially by a scholarship. She entered North Carolina College for Negroes at Durham (now known as North Carolina Central University) in the fall of 1940. This was her first time spending any length of time away from home but Ruth became actively engaged in college life and thoroughly enjoyed the four years she spent at NCC.
While there, she was involved in the Young Women’s Club of America, Sunday school, Women’s chorus, Delta Sigma Theta sorority, Pan Hellenic Council, Social Science Club, Dormitory Council and was twice president of her class — sophomore and senior years. Ruth stated that she was thrilled when her sophomore class sent her to represent them at a youth conference at Tuskegee Institute where she met the famous Dr. George Washington Carver.
Ruth graduated Cum Laude in 1944 with a double major in French and History. Armed with an AB degree and “A” teaching certificate, she reported to her first teaching position in Rockingham. She was hired to teach French and Social studies to high school students at the Rockingham Colored High School (later known as Leak Street School). Ruth met Clyde Watkins, who was also a teacher at Rockingham Colored High School. Two years later, they were married on Aug. 10, 1946 at Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Plainfield, New Jersey. Although the Watkins traveled the world, they chose to make Rockingham their home where they raised a family and gave back to the community far more than expected.
Mrs. Watkins received an MA degree in French in 1951 from Columbia University, New York. She did further study at East Carolina University, Greenville; Hamilton College, Hamilton, New York; Reims University in France; A&T University in Greensboro; Methodist College, Fayetteville; Pembroke State University, Pembroke; and UNC Chapel Hill.
Mrs. Watkins was a leader on the faculty of Rockingham High School when the five high schools in Richmond County were consolidated into Richmond Senior High in 1972. She served on the faculty planning committee and worked with the Student Council during those uncertain times. She helped the students deal with the abrupt changes brought by desegregation. It is a tribute to her and to the students, parents and faculty that Richmond County successfully made the transition.
Mrs. Watkins sought the help of the American Institute for Foreign Study, Greenwich, Connecticut, to assist her in planning trips to France and England for students in her French classes. For several years, during Spring Break, Mrs. Watkins and her French students spent that week touring and sight-seeing in Paris and London.
Mrs. Watkins was nominated Teacher of the Year of Richmond Senior High School by one of her former students, Mrs. Sarah Watkins Hamilton, also a teacher at Richmond Senior High School at the time.
Mrs. Hamilton had this to say about the nominee:
“Some years ago, I was fortunate enough to have been a student in Mrs. Ruth Watkins’ civics class. It was in that classroom that I first encountered a teacher who, then and now, best epitomizes my concept of the “Ideal Teacher.” Hers was a classroom where excellence was the by-word. Upon entering that room, each student soon realized that she not only expected, but would accept nothing less than one’s best. She took the time and effort to get to know her students, their strengths and weaknesses. The standards of excellence she set for each of us were as varied as were our individual differences. Mrs. Watkins must have been one of the first practitioners of individualized instruction. It is significant that today, some 30 years later, as a teacher myself in the same school as Mrs. Watkins, I’m constantly made aware of the fact that her influence on the lives of students today is still just as profound.”
The following citation was prepared by the Learning Institute of North Carolina for Mrs. Watkins’ candidacy for Teacher of the Year:
“A day in the classroom observing Ruth Perry Watkins at work is a day well spent. Three decades of professionalism in working with young children are evident in the respect she receives from her students and colleagues. She teaches French, Social Problems and BioMedical Studies. More importantly, she teaches self-reliance, discipline, and self-respect in a purposeful and uncluttered setting where the needs and potentials of the students are of paramount importance. Students praise her because “she relates her personal experience to the subject” and “she makes us want to learn because she shows us how it will be important for us to learn.”
After competing and winning at the county level and district level, Mrs. Watkins’ final step for the state title of Teacher of the Year included competing with the 12 other districts in North Carolina. Upon winning that competition, Mrs. Watkins was awarded the title of Teacher of the Year, 1978.
Mrs. Watkins had the opportunity to see five of her former students earn the title of “Teacher of the Year” in their respective school districts: 1973, Mary Crawford Fowler, Richmond County; 1973, Carl Hill, Moore County; 1974, Sarah Watkins Hamilton, Richmond County; 1975, Delores Foust, Orange County; 1975, Edna Gales Robinson, Richmond County.
The following was an announcement from the Richmond County Daily News, April 4, 1979:
“Friday, April 5, 1979 has been proclaimed Ruth P. Watkins Day in Richmond County by the Richmond County Board of Commissioners. This coincides with the opening of the annual North Carolina Association of Educators Convention in Charlotte. Mrs. Watkins will be installed as President of the North Carolina Association of Educators on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. at the Civic Center. Through their selection of Ruth P. Watkins as the North Carolina Teacher of the Year in 1978 and through their election of Ruth as the bearer of the most coveted award — President-Elect of the North Carolina Association of Educators, the voices of over 55,000 educators across the state were raised in unison to show the esteem in which Ruth P. Watkins is held.”
Mrs. Watkins was a member of Providence Baptist Church where she served as church clerk and Summer Bible School teacher. After many years of faithful, dedicated service at Providence, Mrs. Watkins decided to change her membership to Mount Zion United Church of Christ where her husband was a “long standing” member who served as chairman of the Deacon Board. She and their son Billy joined Mount Zion. There Mrs. Watkins became an active member of the Sunday school, the church choir and she served as a deaconess.
Mrs. Watkins was a Girl Scout leader of Troop No. 59. She served as a trustee of the Richmond County Library Board; a member of Alpha Pi Chi and Delta Sigma Theta sororities; charter member of the Richmond County Board of Directors of the Community Concerts; secretary/treasurer of Precinct No. 1, first black chairperson of the Richmond County Democratic Party; volunteer at Richmond Memorial Hospital; panelist for Independence of Older Adults; panelist for Richmond County Directives; member of the National Education Association, North Carolina Association of Educators, Association of Classroom Teachers, Association of French Teachers; (national, state, district) served as president of the Southeast Region Association of Classroom Teachers; French Club advisor; served on the Morehead Scholars committee; North Carolina Advisory Council for Teacher Education; selected as one of the Outstanding Women of Richmond County; served as mentor for new teachers, supervised practice teachers; served as a public speaker on topics related to public education, social issues, and new roles for women.
All of Mrs. Watkins’ 30 years of teaching were done in Rockingham except nine years which were done in Southern Pines. After she and Mr. Watkins, also employed at Rockingham Colored High School at the time, were married, questions arose about her employment at the same school. Mrs. Watkins applied in Moore County and was hired immediately as a consummate professional.
Ruth Perry Watkins exemplified the finest traditions of the teaching profession: leadership in her profession and through mastery of curriculum content and teaching methods, strong ties with parents and the community, and equally important, Mrs. Watkins displayed empathy and respect for her students that evoked the best from them, academically and personally.
Mrs. Watkins’ philosophy of teaching was broad, covered many aspects of the teaching environment and impelled her work towards the goal of Master Teacher. She believed that a high degree of intelligence is very definitely an asset in the teaching profession, but intelligence itself is not enough.
She said:
“Physical and mental mental maturity are important but more than maturity, mastery of the subject matter is of prime importance, but even this in itself is not enough. There must be that certain charisma that master teachers share: the open unprejudiced mind, the ability to effectively impart knowledge, the power to inspire others with belief in what they can accomplish, the constant search for good in all people, the belief that it is man’s mind that lifts him above the rest of creation and an appreciation of the importance of the role of the teacher who awakens, nurtures and develops man’s mind.”
Mrs. Watkins believed:
“All students are entitled to an equal opportunity to develop their minds. However, each one is an individual who learns in his own way at his own pace. No two students, for example, require the same amount of time and practice to learn specific subject matter. So, as a learning facilitator, the teacher must (in a manner that reflects human respect for the learner) maintain a classroom atmosphere that encourages optimum learning for all students, the exceptional as well as the average. Students should be provided with opportunities to help plan and implement lessons, and to volunteer for various individual and group tasks. Whether the objective is to prepare students for advanced training, to fit them for life’s work, to help them develop self-discipline, to widen their horizon of appreciation or simply to provide for them a feeling of personal fulfillment, programs and procedures must be sufficiently flexible and varied so that every student benefits from them! There is no one right way to learn, or to teach, but I know, that although the form, the method and even the content must vary to meet individual needs, human respect for the learner must never vary.”
Mrs. Watkins stated:
“The Master Teacher is an active, informed citizen with an intelligent concern for the wellbeing of the community, for the selection of competent public officials, for the issues that are before voters and for the decisions that are made by government at local, state and national levels.”
Mrs. Watkins’ philosophy of education, Teacher of the Year status, years in the classroom, and her outstanding work and service in education organizations at the local, state and national levels, earned her invitations to the White House from Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. President Carter invited Mrs. Watkins to a reception at the White House when the Department of Education became an official department of the federal government. In 1979, Mrs. Watkins and four other American educators were selected for a two-week visit to Russia. The group was the guests of the Educational and Scientific Workers Union of the USSR. They toured and observed in Russian schools. The visit was aimed at encouraging a better understanding between the United States and Russia.
When asked the questions why she became a teacher and why she remained in the classroom for 30 years, she answered:
“I like the subjects I teach and my job better than anything else I could be doing and I cherish the opportunity to explore these fields of knowledge with young and eager minds. Even after 30 years of experience, I am constantly looking for new and better ways to help students learn and I still use every opportunity to learn more about my subjects and how I may become a better teacher.”
Mrs. Watkins often stated: “I have not a moment’s regret of the 30 exciting years I have spent teaching French and History to boys and girls in the Sandhills of North Carolina. I love to see students blossom.”
Mrs. Watkins leaves behind: her loving and devoted husband of 74 years, James Clyde; a son, William C. (Billie) Watkins, of Durham; God daughters, Catherine Blackwell Hoffman of Charlotte, Fredera Gilchrist of Rockingham; and a host of nieces, nephews, great nieces, great nephews, cousins, and friends.
