Donika York is making her mark not only as an educator – like those that she herself is continually inspired by – but also as a mother, volunteer and entrepreneur.
She lives by the tenet that she doesn’t want to be boxed in, and hopes to show others, especially women, that there are no limits to their ambitions.
“My hope for all women is that we are not categorised by what was in the past,” she said.
“While categories help to make life easy to explain to those who think they need explaining, a category does not define you now, nor will it define who you will be.
“As time evolves, so should the evolution of constantly having to prove and explain who we are. A woman can and always has been whomever she thinks she is, and I hope that more people will stop trying to categorise us as just women.”
INNOVATIVE IN THE DAY JOB
As an educator for almost 20 years, Ms York manages her role as an administrator at Whitney Institute, a team leader for the M2 year group and a middle school English teacher.
Driving forward the mission of the school, Ms York is also responsible for the school’s yearbook and social media pages.
As an educator, being dynamic is a must.
“I drive myself to be as innovative as possible along my teaching journey,” Ms York said.
“I am inspired by other leaders and educators interested in growing within their craft by using past experiences and transferable skills.
Her experiences as a student in the public school system brought her immense joy, and she hopes to continue creating a similarly inspiring environment.
“I had healthy and enjoyable learning experiences in public school education as a child and liked to go to school,” she said.
“I trusted and admired my teachers and looked to them as my inspiration.”
JUGGLING DUTIES
Outside of day-to-day teaching duties at Whitney, Ms York was recently promoted to president of West Pembroke’s PTA, where her 8-year-old daughter is a pupil. She is also a member of the Bermuda Education Network’s Outstanding Teacher Award Selection Committee, an award which she was nominated for in 2022.
Her determination to not fit into certain categories has been the catalyst to her growth as an entrepreneur.
In between juggling the teaching and volunteering roles, her work ethic has led to the success of her mobile luxury makeup services, Basic Beauty Studio, and the recent opening of her online clothing store, Debut Apparel Company.
“I have to remind myself that if you do not do the work, you will not get the results you want,” she said. “While help is appreciated, you must be your biggest cheerleader and remain disciplined.”
INSPIRING YOUNG PEOPLE
But her hard work has not gone unnoticed in the community. As part of a recent project on Black Bermudian Entrepreneurs, a young Francis Patton student chose Ms York to highlight her achievements in making women and girls feel beautiful, both inside and out, as an accomplished makeup artist.
To make time for it all, without relegating family and friend relationships to the backseat, Ms York maintains a schedule to make sure “to enjoy the moments with them”.
Spending time watching her daughter “develop her extracurricular skills through dance with United Productions and gymnastics with Bermuda Gymnastics,” has been incredibly rewarding.
“It is difficult to detach entirely from both work and volunteering and family, but I do my best not to feel inadequate by giving myself grace,” she said.
“Spending my time the way I want to outside of working and volunteering hours with family and friends is essential.”
She added: “Sometimes, being alone helps me recharge.”
LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES
But her strength and confidence as an inspiring educator and entrepreneur is all about discipline.
“I am confident in everything I am a part of because I ensure that I remain disciplined in all my crafts and have developed the confidence to say no or walk away from opportunities that do not align with my personal or professional ethics,” she said.
“I make mistakes. I learn from them and adjust.”
BE WHOEVER YOU WANT!
Her hope for women now and in the future is to shake off the idea that there is only one path we can take.
“One of the challenges I have encountered is introducing and reintroducing the concept to people that you do not have to be just one thing.
“You do not just have to be an educator, an accountant or a stay-at-home mom solely. You can be whoever you want, even if that means having more than one title.”
Good advice for all of us!
