A Trini father to thousands in Canada

NO man is an island, but Dr Steve Ramsankar has been kicked off one. By his own father, no less. It was the best thing that ever happened to him. And one of the best things that ever happened to Edmonton. Fifty years after arriving in this country with $100 in his pocket, he is a member of the Order of Canada and considered one of this city’s top 100 citizens of the century. Of the Order of Canada, he says, “I guess they had nobody else to give it to.” It’s hard to tell if this is false modesty, but there is no disputing the man’s impact on the lives of countless inner-city youths. And the love affair continues.

“It was always my dream to teach children,” says the 69-year-old native of San Fernando, Trinidad, born sixth in a family of nine children. “I consider it a calling, something I’m just supposed to do.” It turned out so well because he got caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to do. His father was a no-nonsense man. When he discovered his son drinking beer and playing in a steelband, he shipped him off to live with an uncle  in Winnipeg. He eventually landed a job as a CN Rail porter. When the train stopped in Edmonton, he got off, putting himself through university by working various jobs. He graduated with two bachelor degrees, in science and education. In 1983, he was given an honorary doctorate by the U. of A.  “A great honour,” he says. He began teaching special-needs children at the old Queen’s Avenue school. “I got into trouble because I talk too much,” he says. “I had a habit of opening my mouth just to change feet.”

Dr Ramsankar had these radical ideas. One hug beats two kicks in the ass, for example. “People used to laugh at me. I was always being told that I was crazy.” In 1970, he found his home — Alex Taylor School. And the laughter stopped. For 29 years, he was the principal. For 29 years, he took diamonds in the rough and polished them into solid citizens with his unique mixture of love, understanding and discipline. He made school fun. He made school a home for himself and a safe environment for his students, a “special place” where love and understanding were as important as math and science. “A lot of the kids used to call me dad. That was OK, because the school was a family, a home away from home where you could be comfortable.”

It wasn’t that way when he walked through the front doors for  the first time. “It had a very bad reputation,” he says. “It was a tough school. There was lots of poverty and all kinds of abuse.” Students lacked motivation and inspiration. And, in some cases, breakfast. “You can’t learn on an empty stomach,” he says. He started a breakfast programme. He started a hot-lunch programme. He brought in a police officer three days a week to meet and talk to the kids, to show that cops are friends, not enemies. Teachers were encouraged to hug. He started an evening English class  for parents so they could keep up with their children. “The whole attitude of the school changed,” he says. Soon, he was asked to give lectures on his teaching methods in Japan, the Netherlands and Egypt. Teachers in other countries began following his example. His reputation grew, but not his head. “I got more from the kids than they ever got from me,” he says.

“Human beings have needs. There has to be spiritual guidance in life. I find it very rewarding when people do well. There is great personal satisfaction.” In 1973, his third year at the school, he promised students a trip to his native Trinidad if they showed up every day and worked hard. It was all about effort, not necessarily results. That was the first time wife Doreen almost divorced him. When he couldn’t raise enough money to take the kids, he mortgaged his own home to pay for the trip. Two of the youngsters on that first trip were Allan Chiu and Richard Mah. Today, Dr Chiu is his doctor and Dr Mah is his dentist. He took students on similar trips three other times between 1982 and 1989. It is a special thing when youngsters he helped return as adults to say thank you. Dr Ramsankar’s philosophy is based on love, trust and hope. If you have hope, you have a chance.

(Courtesy the Edmonton Sun)