Bob Chakar administers language arts and reading initiatives for children in the New York City area, Yonkers, and the Bronx as a general education development and district reading language arts specialist. With 30+ years of experience as an educator and school leader, Bob Chakar has helped manage student outcomes for a K-12 student body.
Dr. Chakar works extensively with the district’s most vulnerable students, including those placed in schools by state education agencies. He has 20 years of experience as a teacher and principal in Connecticut and New York.
Professionally, Dr. Chakar maintains memberships with the National Education Association, the School Administrators Association of New York, and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Moreover, Dr. Chakar has secured multiple professional certifications as a New York State educator, including certifications in early childhood education and childhood education, and as a literacy specialist for Grades 5 through 12. He is also a certified school supervisor and administrator in Connecticut. His academic degrees include a doctor of philosophy in educational leadership from the University of Bridgeport and graduate degrees in school administration and reading language arts.
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
My typical day is rising early in the morning and being grateful that a new day has been born for me. My day is productive by engaging with my students and trying to influence the students to make good choices.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Typically, when I have an idea, I will share it with others for their insight and help identify the upside and downside of the idea.
What’s one trend that excites you?
One trend that is particularly exciting is the increasing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) into various aspects of life and work. I’m excited to see how this new technology improves areas like personalized medicine, sustainable technology, and even entertainment. More impressively, I am waiting to see how AI will be able to call balls and strikes in baseball games, leaving the role of the home plate umpire obsolete.
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
I enjoy exercising regularly. This habit has supported my desire to be productive. Finding time for self-care provides me the energy and satisfaction to go out and energize the individuals I work with.
What advice would you give your younger self?
The advice I would share with my younger self would be to experience as many things as possible. Learn to sing, learn to play an instrument, and definitely value the ability to speak other languages.
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you on?
After years of reading, research and watching, I believe there is a predisposed purposeful structure in this country to incarcerated individuals, predominately of the brown and black persuasion. Our prison system is a horrible reflection of this belief. In four decades, our incarcerated citizens have grown from 300 thousand in the 1970s to almost 3 million today. Addressing the reasons for our social issues that have plagued our nation has been met with insufficient funding, and a mediocre, at best, response to stop the cycle of incarceration. The building of prisons and the jobs those prisons create continues to be problematic.
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Since a young age, I have always found the value in working and saving a little of the money made. I would strongly encourage people to start early and save a portion of what they make every week or two. Money makes money with compounding interest.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
Walking and/or reading something of interest has helped me deal with situations when feeling overwhelmed or unfocused. At times too, I have sought the expertise of older family members who have assured me that “this too shall pass.”
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
I was able to advance my career by having the support of others who believed in me and encouraged me to keep pressing forward. I would not take no or a rejection as the end of the challenge. Pressing forward allowed doors to open and then only reinforced my desire to focus on a goal and work until achieved.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
One failure I have experienced is understanding that some do not want me to succeed. Learning that there are individuals who would like me to fail when I had aspirational desires. The lesson I learned is to keep my aspirations and goals to myself or loved ones. Some people enjoy it when others are unsuccessful in meeting their goals.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Using Excel to create long-term financial goals and graphs has been productive. Using Excel has allowed me to look forward into the future and see what is feasible by working hard and saving for my family’s future. Using this software provides me with information about what type of lifestyle I might have.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast you’ve gotten a ton of value from and why?
My most recent favorite book is by Michelle Alexander: The New Jim Crow. This book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, argues that the US criminal justice system is being used as a contemporary system of racial control even as it adheres to the principle of colorblindness.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
Recently, I watched Fahrenheit 451. The movie was based on the 1953 novel of the same name by Ray Bradbury. The movie intrigued me because it takes place in a controlled society in an oppressive future, in which the government sends out firemen to destroy all literature to prevent revolution and thinking. As an educator, I have enjoyed this film because it shows the value of literature, staying educated, and the consequences of not being able to be educated. Ultimately, robots will correct you if you’re wrong.
Key learnings
- Providing a genuine connection with other professionals with a common desire to help others.
- Lead with integrity and a general premise to help improve the lives of everyone.
- Learning is truly a life-long endeavor, with challenges and successes that capture and define one’s life.