A Lincoln University professor held his student’s baby after she told him she would miss class because she couldn’t find a babysitter. The experience was life-changing for the 21-year-old student, who was finally able to take notes.
“I’ve always wanted to go to an HBCU. So, I decided, what’s better than the first? So I chose Lincoln,” said Imani Lamarr, 21, now a senior at the Pennsylvania university.
Imani Lamarr shared that her Science professor, Dr. Aqeel Dix, told her, “No.” She continued, “And I was just looking at him like, no? I can’t miss class? I don’t have anybody to watch my baby.”
“I’m not going to have one of my students miss my class because they have no one to watch their child. That’s just not an option for me,” Dix said.
Imani had just returned to school after taking a semester off following the premature birth of her son, who spent months in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
“It was really hard. Every day, going to the hospital, seeing him and not being able to help him—it was hard,” Lamarr recalled.
Christopher Murphy, named after Lamarr’s father, had become her world, and her schedule now revolved around him.
When she told Dr. Dix she had to miss class because she couldn’t find a babysitter, his answer was firm: no.
“That’s my character. I don’t mind helping my students wherever they need me,” he said.
Lamarr was uncertain about bringing her baby to class. How would he behave? Would other students get distracted? But when Dix started lecturing while holding the baby, she realized she could do this.
“I never thought it would come to that. To have somebody who’s there for me… who really cares… it meant a lot,” she said.
Lamarr, who is now a graduate, says it’s all due to her mentor and her 2-year-old son. “You really don’t understand how much this meant to me,” she said.
Very kind of the professor to hold the child. The notes behind him don’t look like science class notes.