BCS Advantage Magazine Special Edition #9 | Page 9

Mr. Ken Does Math
By Tim Reaves, Communications Department
At 90 years old, Kenneth Ames Maultsby has much experience to share.
He grew up during the Great Depression and served as a Navy electronics
technician in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II, where he witnessed
an atomic bomb test at Bikini Atoll. He spent decades of his life self-employed
as a civil engineer and contracted on more than 500 buildings. But it was his
lifelong passion to help others that led Maultsby to tutor Buncombe County
students in math.
“It’s a very practical way to get a good night’s rest, helping someone else,”
he said. “There’s nothing in my handbook of beliefs that says ‘retire.’ ‘Six
days shalt thou labor.’”
Kenneth Maultsby at a
Homework Diner at Clyde A.
Erwin Middle School.
Maultsby began tutoring with his church about 10 years ago, and former
students still recognize him. They call him Mr. Ken and thank him for believing
in them.
“I get so satisfied seeing these young people make good choices,” Maultsby said. “And I’ve been looking
for another chance to get involved.”
In 2017, he heard about Homework Diners at Clyde A. Erwin Middle School. The program, sponsored by the
United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County, provides students with homework support from teachers
and volunteer tutors, along with a free meal for the whole family. Maultsby signed on as a math tutor, and
he’s gotten a lot of enjoyment thus far. He helps Erwin students understand angles, circumference and
area of circles, factoring, proportionality, and more. He also teaches and plays his students in chess.
“It’s like life,” he said. “You make decisions. And every time anything happens on the board you need to
reevaluate all your choices and make changes.”
Erwin seventh-grader Tamika Foreman said she was struggling a bit
with her homework and with organization, but after working with
Maultsby she’s making progress.
“It’s good to learn new things every day,” she said. “So every
Monday when we meet I ask him for homework help and also about
things that happened back in the day.”
“She was interested in me, growing up in the Depression and being
in the Navy,” Maultsby said. “And she wants to be a plastic surgeon
one day, so I want to help her work on the steps to get there.”
Kenneth Maultsby, left, plays chess with a
Clyde A. Erwin Middle School student at a
Homework Diner.
United Way’s Homework Diners program allows students to receive homework support from teachers and volunteer tutors, along
with a free meal for the whole family. In addition to the homework help and meal, families have a chance to learn about
community resources and take advantage of a variety of educational programs at these events.
United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County offers Homework Diners at Asheville Middle School, Enka Middle School, Clyde A.
Erwin Middle School, and Charles D. Owen Middle School.
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