RSHS history teacher finds love, hope driving Raider Magic within students

RICHMOND COUNTY, N.C. — Tucked away in the corner of the Richmond Senior High School gymnasium, there’s a familiar face at every home basketball game who orchestrates the movement of students, more commonly known to locals as the “Bleacher Creatures,” to complete a wide variety of tasks to help create something special during home basketball games.

It’s not a dedicated parent or family member cheering on their child but rather a high school teacher volunteering to bring out that Raider Magic each time the doors open to the public for an event.

Arthur Gilliam, a history teacher and senate advisor, said he’s always known that he wanted to make an impact in the lives of young people but didn’t know his calling until he became a teacher five years ago.

“I just didn’t know in what capacity,” said Gilliam when he talked about why he wanted to be a teacher. Teaching was his calling and life’s mission.

That capacity quickly became apparent as his plate became full of volunteer opportunities to engage students at a school district of nearly 6,610 students in 15 schools located near the South and North Carolina border, halfway between Charlotte and Wilmington, N.C.

Gilliam said he attends games to support the school’s three head basketball coaches, Josh Calhoun, the JV boys’ basketball coach; Teddy Mosely, the girls’ basketball coach; and Donald Pettigrew, the varsity boys’ basketball coach.

“They are not just building successful basketball programs, but they are tangibly impacting students’ lives, and I see it,” he said.

Gilliam didn’t start attending all the basketball games until one student opened his eyes and heart to the true meaning of being a teacher, mentor, and friend to the many students who passed through his classroom and the hallways.

“I had the honor of teaching Jalen David, who passed away in an untimely death. He was an excellent student and basketball player,” he said. “I went to a few of his games, but I wish I went to more. I never want that feeling of wishing I had been there more again.”

After Jalen’s death, Gilliam said the basketball team has continued to remember and honor his legacy, which was special to him.

“I think when athletes see teachers at the games, it reinforces that level of support and means a lot to them,” he said.

The 33-year-old University of North Carolina-Pembroke graduate is quite busy during the games, with questions from dozens of students bombarding him throughout the games. It’s not only students but community members too. He’s slow to move through the stands as he greets anyone who makes eye contact with him. His smile and personality seem contagious among the young and old who believe in the Raider Magic.

“I am involved in many extracurricular activities,” he said. “It makes me really tired, but I love seeing students enjoy their high school experience. They will never get this time back.”

Gilliam said high school is a significant point in a student’s life, especially during and after the pandemic. “Everything these students have gone through, my goal is to help them create memories that will last,” Gilliam said.

He said those memories are the foundation of how students will approach life after school, be productive members of society, and carry the torch of Raider Nation around the country and world.

Gilliam said he hoped students found a safe space when they were around him and after walking away from his classroom, hallways, gym, or school.

“I gear everything that I do, say, and teach to creating a safe space for students,” he said. “Safe to be themselves unapologetically; however, that looks for them. I want students to know that it’s a no-judgment zone when they come to my class. They can be who they are unapologetic. They are safe there.”

His ultimate goal as an educator is to create safe spaces by building relationships.

An advocate of being a “community educator,” Gilliam said that knowing the student’s parents and families helps him build relationships with the students in and outside the classroom.

“My role as a teacher doesn’t end at 3:30,” he said. “I’m a teacher in the grocery store, church, or wherever else my students may see or find me. That’s what I have seen, and that’s what I know growing up.”

As a black male educator who teaches African American Studies, Gilliam said that historically, black educators were figures in the community that people saw in and outside the classroom.

“They were an integral part of the ‘village’ or the ‘black community,’ and that is the type of educator I desire to be, and that is the type of relationship I desire to build with my students,” he said. “It takes a village to raise a child.”

Gilliam said he wants his students to know he’s a part of their “village.”  

“I’m invested in not just their learning,” he said. “I’m not just invested in their athletic abilities, but I’m invested in them as a “person” as a human. I want to make sure that they are okay. To do that requires being involved in a little more than just in the classroom.”

Love and hope are the foundation of his teaching model, and if his students learn something along the way, it just adds to the awesomeness of being a teacher at Richmond County Schools.

“I want them to know that they are loved. They are valued. Their life matters,” he said. “I feel if they know that, I can get them to learn anything. I’m hard on my students. I hold them accountable. I fuss and have hard conversations, but love is the root of everything, and I believe they can feel that.”

Next time you see Gilliam sitting in the Richmond Raider folding chair next to the exterior door, stop by and have a conversation. He may try to sell you a 50-50 raffle ticket to help raise money for a student organization, or he might stand up and hug you in hopes of making your day a little brighter.

Many students and teachers will argue that Gilliam is the standard for what Raider Magic means and how one is supposed to feel being part of a small community. Positive memories are the fuel that drives people to return to Richmond County and start their own families growing up in the Richmond County Schools.