All it took was one look. But not just any look, the look.
Anthony Jenkins was an average boy growing up on the southeast side of Washington, D.C., raised by an average single mother, Naomi Jenkins. He was a good kid, by most accounts, but that doesn't mean he never strayed from his path.
"She didn't have to say anything, it just took that look," he said laughing. "It came out when we were in public, when she couldn't get her hands on me. I didn't get the look at home ... But when I did, I knew in that moment that if I didn't straighten up, when I got home, the look was what I would wish for."
Life is different now for Jenkins and his mom. Instead of giving him a look when he's in trouble, she looks at a grown man with a family and a strong career trajectory.
West Virginia State University ended its national search in May for a new president, selecting Jenkins to lead the school as its 11th president.
Even before his current role, when Jenkins worked as an administrator for other schools, Naomi Jenkins would tell all her friends, "My son runs that school." He would correct her as kindly as he could.
"Well mom, I don't run the school," he would tell her. "I help run the school."
"Without her belief in me, her discipline and her high expectations, I would not be the president of WVSU. It would not even be possible," Jenkins said. "People often laugh when they hear a grown man call his mother 'Mom,' but we are extremely close."
Jenkins has had a long career in higher education, the success of which he credits to his mom. He most recently served as the senior associate vice president for student development and enrollment services at the University of Central Florida. Prior to that, he served in the U.S. Army.
Jenkins began his tenure as president on July 1, as several West Virginia counties struggled to pick up the pieces after floods devastated their communities just a week prior. He spent his first day in Clendenin, helping clean.
Back on campus, he's taken time to learn about WVSU's traditions.
One day, he walked with Ann Brothers Smith, chairwoman of the school's board of governors, outside of Judge Damon J. Keith Scholars Hall. The two were leaving a meeting and walked into a large open area where the school's seal is engraved in the ground.
"Just as I was about ready to step onto it, I feel this hand grab my arm," Jenkins said. "I turned around and - well I didn't know how strong Dr. Smith really was until then."
The woman grabbed his arm to stop him from committing a cardinal sin at WVSU: Students at the school have a tradition of not stepping on the seal. It's a tradition all freshman at the school have to learn.
He hasn't made the same mistake again.
He has thought a lot about what he wants his time at WVSU to be remembered for.
"[Former] President [Brian] Hemphill created a lot of excitement, and he should get a lot of credit for that. What I want to do is make sure that we keep that momentum going and we build off of it," Jenkins said. "We are not simply going to toe the line of what Hemphill did."
Among other things, Jenkins wants to continue to growing the school's enrollment, continue to offer more degree programs online and attract more donors.
Just as Jenkins was preparing to move to West Virginia, he read the headlines - the state Legislature was at an impasse in deciding its budget. If it couldn't reach an agreement, the state government might shut down. Worse, the agreement could mean the school's state appropriations would be axed.
Neither possibility came to fruition, but Jenkins was on the phone frequently with Hemphill asking for updates on the situation. Even though he was worried, he figured the state would pull itself out of the situation, pass a budget and avoid a government shutdown.
"Nothing about that situation frightened me to say, 'I think you made a decision you may want to reconsider,'" Jenkins said. "It actually energized me more to say, 'In spite of that, WVSU is going to succeed.'"
Reach Jake Jarvis at
jake.jarvis@wvgazettemail.com,
304-348-7939 or follow
@NewsroomJake on Twitter.