We were lucky to catch up with Timothy Moore recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Timothy , so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
As an educational consultant and 42 year old philanthropist, when I enter rooms- I find myself often alone as a Black Heterosexual Southern Male/Man. When I go into high impact rooms, my demographic is not represented. According to the National Center for Education Statistics’ National Teacher and Principal Survey and Dr. Travis J. Bristol of the University of California, Berkeley and the latest 2020-2021 census “ONLY 1.4% of public school teachers are Black men.” Under 2% of Black men are being represented in classrooms across America. When I polled my personal social media, I found that some of my followers had never had a male teacher in a tested subject and the majority had only had between 1-2 Black male teachers in their entire 12 year stint of public education. This is so critical when you think about how we view ourselves and possible careers as we age.
When you move into the high impact areas of policy, education reform, think tanks, consultant work and artist development then the numbers are even more scarce. I feel a tremendous weight to go and speak courageously in those spaces where we (Black folks) are underrepresented. When I step in those rooms-my ancestors: Langston Hughes, Harriet Tubman, Ali, Frederick Douglass, James Baldwin, Nat Turner, Malcolm X, Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and my entire lineage of creative and brilliant family members are on my heart. I remember the looks on black and brown faces in my communities that I serve that are counting on me to be the difference. I think of my mentors Ms. Tosha Downey, Mr. Dasan Ahanu, and Mr. Asia Samson who have taken time to craft me to be bold. I am so grateful for every time they have empowered me to think even deeper on my purpose. I carry my mother and father’s beliefs that a man must stand for righteousness and truth unless they fall victim to the history of being a marginalized and oppressed people. My sisters who are brilliant Angela and Ramona. My brothers Daniel and Andre who are creative and powerful. My three daughters: Iyanla, Asha and Imani are on my mind to create a New America where education is equitable and rich for all and not just spaces that are comfortable. I’ve learned to speak with love so that my words are heard but to speak unapologetically for so many that will never get the chance to articulate their ideas in these spaces.
I urge people to go into these spaces boldly. Don’t get comfortable being the only face that looks like yours. You are there for the work of many and may be the last to enter that space so fill it with power and grace. Look in a mirror and tell yourself, “I belong here.” Imposters syndrome will try to make you shrink. In those moments, I intentionally ask more questions. I ask for clarification. I lean on my studies and my training that has brought me to that particular space. I breathe. I think and then when I am sure-I speak. I stand in the gap for every student and every teacher that is counting on me to make a difference in the United States of America, Shelby County and my beloved home of Memphis.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
Timothy “Urban Thoughts” Moore has a Master’s of Arts in Teaching: Instruction of Curriculum Design and a BA in English: Concentration/Creative Writing from The University of Memphis. Timothy has performed on stages around the world as a spoken word artist and is a heavily sought after educational consultant that turns around schools. Urban Thoughts is a proud recipient of The United States of America Congressional Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for Outstanding Service in Education and Community Service. He is a Watering Hole Graduate Fellow from the Cave Canem of the South which is considered one of the top writer conferences for people of color in the nation. Urban is a heavily awarded spoken word artist, multiple slam poet champion and published author who loves to educate and inspire.
One of the most brilliant minds in the Mid-South, he attended the (MIT) Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a Project Based Learning Summer Colloquium XQ cohort which led to his new outlook that focuses on further incorporating literature and critical thinking using poetry and hip-hop as therapy to create solutions to social justice issues. His work is based in restorative justice practices. Networks throughout the nation reach out to him for lesson plans and programming to make learning engaging. Recently, he has served as an educator in Memphis and was rewarded in May 2022 as Walt Disney World’s 1 of the 50 Most Innovative Educators and Storyteller’s in the Nation. Timothy was identified as 1 of 4 African-Americans, 1 of 2 Black men identified and the only person from the state of Tennessee to be awarded. He proudly represented Memphis, TN and Shelby County on an international stage as the news went around the world on multiple platforms.
His brand is built in creating corridors to connect community with wealth. Recently over the last 5 years, he has lead groups by teaching them how to grant write which was spurred by seeing artist struggle during the pandemic. He has hosted over 450 cohorts which has led to a collective 100 million dollars in grant funded awards written by his adult students for non-profits, for-profits and individual awards. He has carved a new niche out as a primary go to person in the field of grant writing to consult with. People ask all the time, “Where do you find the time?” Urban often responds, “Careful planning and vetting clients whose work you become passionate about.” His new venture The Grant Collective is a small cohort of primarily BIPOC based entrepreneurs with a mission to raise 1Million in funding in less than 12 months. As of today, 3 months in over 300K has been funded through grants.
He is relentless in believing that to create true equity: two elements have to exist- education and economic wealth. He is intent of disrupting both spaces with love and community through focused efforts to collaborate, explore and learn. You can find Urban on a stage speaking or on a virtual webinar doing what he loves most-teaching and coaching.
This year in 2024, I will be releasing my first full length books dealing with topics of mental illness, education equity and poetry. Look out for those and come to a workshop. This is your personal invite to come help me build.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Three things that I want to stress to people that looking back has really driven me to this level were embedded by my parents. My father taught me resilience through righteousness. My father is a peculiar man of a very strong moral compass. By peculiar I mean that for him the world is literally Black and White. There is very little grey in my father’s world. He loves people with his whole heart and believes that things are right or wrong. Do right by people. Give more than you take. Give a $10 dollar effort for a $5 dollar job. Show up early and be good to people. His work ethic showed me that sacrifice is necessary to success. You have to be willing to lose sometimes, to be humble, and to be courageous when you know deep down that you are right.
My mother taught me creativity. Her ability to adapt and learn is so impressive. She is the ultimate artist. The first painter, craftswoman, poet, thinker and jokester that I knew. She taught me that degrees do not detail the intellect. Hard work and perseverance will beat a degree any day. The irony is after all her children had graduated college, she went back and sacrificed late nights. She showed us that she was willing to endure. She graduated from college last summer. I remember watching my parents on that day and realizing so much that I had fought or maybe didn’t understand- I value now.
The skill of critical thinking is an area that I developed over time. The ability to examine, question and evaluate processes, people, and ideas has been God gifted. I never studied for major test. The answers often were just so clear to me. My ability to retain information and synthesize information is just talent that I nurtured through cross word puzzles, reading, philosophy and being a life-time learner. Be curious. Never stop learning and wanting to learn.
Last…and I know this is more than three but I have to place my sister Angela Acker here. My other sister Dr. Ramona Moore and my brothers Dan, Dre and deceased late god brother June have been highlighted in other opportunities to speak on them a lot but my baby sister Angela Acker: sense of study. Her ability to lock in on a task and think of it holistically, micro and at a macro level taught me a lot about processing crisises of communities. Her ability to draw correlations often make me question my approaches and give me new lenses to operate in. I wanted to be intentional and told myself the next interview that I wanted to give her some flowers for all the prep work behind the scenes of two of my biggest interviews with Yahoo! and CNN. This idea of being able to lock in and be open minded enough to learn through the process is an element that I definitely picked up from her and I’m grateful for that.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
Collaboration is so key. It is so critical. Often in this work, I am always looking for the next challenge to impact this world. At this point of my life, I am doing legacy work. I am always interested in collaborating, meeting new people and exploring possibilities that will lead to a better world for marginalized and oppressed people of all genders, religions, and demographics. I find myself opening emails and reading responses and just feeling seen. This work of philanthropy, educational work, art and grant writing is lonely.
It is a lot of time to myself thinking, processing and working through ideals. In those spaces, it is so beautiful to gather your tribe and have support to tackle hard issues. Funders of my work to benefit my community in an even more impactful way is always welcome. Think tank partners are always welcome. When I think over my life, I am just so grateful that the Universe has always allowed the right partners to enter into my life at critical moments of growth. I honestly believe that I am in another moment of transcendence. This next chapter of work has to be even more powerful and intentional. In that I seek spaces that see my value, pay my worth, and allow me space to truly dig and fight to create love here and now.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.urbanthoughtspoetry.com
- Instagram: UrbanThoughts06
- Facebook: https://www.Facebook.com/UrbanThoughtsPoetry
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothylmoore/
- Twitter: UrbanThoughts06
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/urbanthoughtspoetry
- Other: All grant writing, business and consultant workshops are on my personal website: Www.UrbanThoughtsPoetry.com. Come get familiar. #Onward
Image Credits
Credit Photographers: Jason Hall (Knight The Poet/Photog)-Millington, TN, Malik The Martian (Photog)- Memphis, TN, and Jenni “JChic” Graham (personal stylist/brand curator) -Memphis,TN/Atlanta GA for the images and keeping me up to date on content.