Watts Sanderson Jr. ’68
JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • WINTER 2020-21 35
their own black community.
As the Black Power movement
of the late ‘60s emerged from
the Civil Rights movement of
that era, attending a mostly
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some community members’
ideals of what it meant to be
African-American.
“We were a little bit weird
because we’re black, but are we
‘black enough’ in our own black
community?” Rhonne said. “You
had to stay ‘black enough,’ but
you couldn’t be offensive to
the people you live with every
single day (at school).”
Rhonne said that he is grateful
for the high standards of
excellence and discipline that
were set for him at Jesuit by
teachers such as Fr. Richard
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�������������������������� These standards
became barometers for how
he measured hard work and
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“One thing that really resonates
with me, especially about
Watts, is the resounding statement
of academic excellence,”
Rhonne said. “The excellence
always followed suit after going
to a Jesuit High School, and it
never faded.”
As Watts Sanderson Jr.’s time at Jesuit advanced, his mailbox
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over the country.
He received one from almost every Jesuit university, and Ivy League
schools such as Harvard and Yale were showing interest in the young
man from West Tampa.
He chose Howard University, the prestigious, historically black
institution in Washington, D.C. He hoped to follow in his father’s
footsteps and become a businessman. Watts enjoyed his time in
the nation’s capital so much so that one day he told Rhonne that he
was transferring – Howard was just too much fun. If the 20-year-old
wanted to seriously complete his studies, he needed to come home.
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he began volunteering as a tutor with local school children. The
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Hillsborough County, in high school Watts had helped his mother
grade papers and run copies of worksheets. He knew what it took to
be an educator, and he enjoyed working with children, so he decided
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instead of dad’s.
Watts’ interest in education led to internships with Hillsborough
County Public Schools. After he earned a Master’s degree, HCPS
recruited him to apply for a principalship.
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he took a position as a manager at the Tampa Housing Authority that
actually paid better than school principal.
It became a test of how badly Watts wanted to be a principal. When
HCPS came calling for a second round of interviews a year later,
Watts couldn’t pass up the opportunity. He was assigned the principal
position at Grover Cleveland Elementary.
“He was excited, but he was miffed by it, too,” Rhonne said with a
chuckle. “He wouldn’t have wanted to have taken a year’s break. He
wouldn’t have wanted to take a break at all from education.”
Watts didn’t take any more breaks from education for the better
part of three decades. He worked at Grover Cleveland for a few years
before being reassigned as principal of Lomax Elementary in East
Tampa.
LEFT A Tampa city mural
recognizes Watts Sanderson Sr.
(top right) among the leaders
of historic Central Avenue
LEFT TO RIGHT
Watts Sanderson Jr. '68, pictured in the back row middle as part of the Student Patrol in the 1968 yearbook
Watts Sanderson Jr. '68
Rhonne Sanderson '70 (left) and Watts Sanderson Jr. '68 with their mother, Idella, whose career as a teacher influenced Watts to become an educator