Johnnycake Elementary Principal Jean Brewster and one of the school’s star supporters, Adalius Thomas

At Johnnycake Elementary School in Catonsville, Adalius Thomas is someone students and staff are as likely to see walking through the school hallways as running down a football field. The Ravens linebacker and defensive end supports the academic progress of students in countless ways including personally mentoring students, encouraging parent involvement, and securing additional resources.

It all began in 2002, when Adalius Thomas married Sheri, then a first-grade teacher at Johnnycake. A year or so after the marriage, Sheri Thomas left teaching, but she quickly returned to support the school, with her new husband and their newly established family foundation. Quoted in the Catonsville Times, Sheri Thomas said that “I knew there was need here and that he would have a profound effect on the children. He’s had a profound impact on me, so I knew he would be good for the kids.”

Johnnycake Principal Jean Brewster confirms that the involvement of Adalius Thomas has been good for the students. “Mr. Thomas,” Brewster says, “has been an outstanding role model who has consistently emphasized academics and positive behavior at school. The children look up to him as a mentor with strong values and beliefs about the importance of education.”

The Thomas family: Allana, Sheri, and Adalius

On February 2, more than 350 students – almost all of them wearing purple – joined with staff to surprise their star volunteer with an Adalius Thomas Day assembly. Brewster says that all it took to lure Adalius Thomas away from Super Bowl celebrations was a call from his wife expressing concern that one of the students he mentors was having a lot of difficulties.

According to school counselor Catherine Holt, the event was all the more special because Adalius Thomas is not interested in publicity or recognition. “He made it clear from the very beginning that he wasn’t interested in the press…His whole focus has been to promote academic excellence with the children. Since the first year, at the kickoff for his involvement, he has talked to the students about his expectations, about how his priority has always been education, and how important it is that he is a college graduate as well as a football player.”

The partnership with the Thomas family started small, Holt says, and continues to grow. It began with the Thomas Foundation providing some small incentives for the students and hosting a parent night to encourage their involvement.

Now, during the football season, Adalius Thomas visits the school once a week to personally mentor students. During the off-season, he and his wife check in with the school via e-mail and telephone to check on specific students and the school’s general progress. He also assisted the school in securing a donation of computers and forged a partnership with Baltimore County firefighters to serve as additional mentors for students.

Principal Brewster makes a presentation to Adalius Thomas.

For the last three years, Adalius Thomas has paid for hundreds of Johnnycake students to attend Ravens games. “In order to attend,” Holt explains, “these children have to do all their homework and classwork and have to be on ‘green’ [which means good behavior]. Usually about every six weeks, the names of all the eligible students are assembled, and we do a drawing to select 90 children to attend a game – 30 each from the third, fourth, and fifth grades.”

Principal Brewster notes, “Since Mr. Thomas has been involved with the school, we have had fewer referrals to the office, especially during football season when children are working to earn a ticket to the Ravens game. This means more children are in class learning and we are seeing the results in terms of improving student achievement.”

In addition, in 2005, the Thomas family provided holiday gifts for 25 students. “Rather than bringing an entourage, like most celebrities,” Holt notes, “Adalius and his wife came with her parents and her brother – who were visiting them for Christmas.”

As Adalius Thomas said to the Catonsville Times, “Everyone has to have a purpose in life. And this is my purpose…[It’s] both my obligation and my pleasure to help.”

Story by Diana L. Spencer, communications officer. Photos provided by Johnnycake Elementary School.