BLACK HISTORY MONTH PROFILE: Coach Ignatius Caraway
HUTTO – In a life punctuated with the type of recognitions won through commitment and hard work, Ignatius Caraway has been true to his core value – doing whatever is needed to serve the community.
The self-proclaimed military brat was class president all four years of high school, participated heavily in church, was in student leadership committees, did volunteer work, was a star athlete, went to college on a football scholarship and served his country as a soldier in Desert Shield and Desert Storm.
“When I was growing up the biggest influences in my life were coaches. Guys that pushed me and held me accountable. They all guided me,” said Caraway.
He also credits his grandparents, who he lived with in Lubbock from eighth grade through high school.
“My grandfather told me it’s not who you hang around with, it’s who you are. You have to make your own steps and be willing to sacrifice and be willing to be a servant,” he said.
Caraway left the military in order to spend more time with his wife and son in Lubbock. He got a job coaching high school and took his team to the state championships three times, winning the state title in 2005. He was named South Plains Coach of the Year in 2003 and 2004, and Texas Coach of the Year in 2005.
A career opportunity for his wife saw the family moving to central Texas, and in 2007, Caraway got a job as assistant principal for Hutto Middle School. In 2008, he became the head boys’ basketball coach at Hutto High School. He passes the generational knowledge received in his upbringing on to his students.
“I’m in education, so these young men – white, Black, Hispanic – I give them what they need to hear, not what they want to hear,” he said.
Part of that lesson is teaching young men to be leaders.
“A leader is being a servant. Out front or behind the scenes, whatever it takes to lift our community,” Caraway said. “We’re always talking about, ‘how do they want to be seen in the public?’ We dress for success, we do volunteer work, whatever we need to do for the community, so the kids aren’t thinking about themselves all the time.”
He added that volunteer projects have included community cleanups and building wheelchair ramps, projects the students themselves have suggested to help their neighborhoods.
Even though he has enjoyed a successful career, the award-winning coach said it has not always been easy.
“The biggest challenge for me was trying to get the opportunity to be judged on my ability and not on the color of my skin,” Caraway said. “We’ve come a long way, but at 17 and 18 years old, an African-American wasn’t given the opportunity to do a lot of things, so you had to prove yourself more than your counterparts.”
Caraway believes focusing on the accomplishments of African Americans during Black History Month can help bridge the racial divide.
“In my lessons, we look at what African Americans invented that you didn’t think they invented, like the shoestring, the stop light system, things the kids didn’t know,” he said. “I love that it brings awareness to the community. Do I wish it wasn’t Black history, just history? Maybe 10 years from now it will be. It’s gotten better, but it still has a long way to go.”
