Jackson Gunter sat next to his mom, knees pulled into his chest, nibbling on a chocolate chip cookie as the two discussed Jackson’s future plans: become a professional baseball player for the New York Yankees, or the president of the United States.
“Whichever one works out!” he said, shrugging, during a recent interview at Little Green Hive in Grandin Village. Jackson wore red-and-blue Nike glasses that matched his Buffalo Bills sweatshirt, and had a small cut on his forehead that his mom said resulted from a game of tag they played at home.
Jackson, who is a third-grader at Highland Park Elementary School in Roanoke, said his presidential aspirations were inspired by a recent experience he had with the Roanoke City Council.
After moving from Grandin Court Elementary School to Highland Park Elementary School this year, Jackson started to notice some issues at the Highland Park playground: broken equipment, litter, a walkway paved with cracked bricks, a broken fence.
On Dec. 15, he spoke in front of the council, standing on a stepstool so he could reach the microphone at the lectern. His PowerPoint presentation featured photos of trash and broken equipment at the park and listed action items for the city to take.
“I want a playground that I am proud of,” he told the council. “It could be a great park. We need parks a lot right now.”
He had met with the mayor a month in advance, and the city had already started ordering parts for replacement and putting repairs for the park on its calendar by the time Jackson gave his presentation.
He was joined by a handful of classmates and their parents, who came to support his speech to the council. One girl sat in the front row and colored in a book for the remainder of the meeting.
After Jackson had taken his seat, Councilwoman Evelyn Powers said she thinks he’ll be a great leader one day. Councilman Phazhon Nash joked that the council has about 10 years before Jackson is running to take one of their seats.
Jackson’s sense of community began years ago, his grandmother says.
Jackson said speaking before the council made him think he might make a good leader one day — “I just feel like I would be good at it because of what I did.”
He said his classmates started a petition to improve the playground that garnered 57 signatures, including the principal’s.
But, he said, the students lost it — “The janitor might have picked it up,” he said. Everyone who had signed it had agreed to participate in a cleanup day and to pick up trash at school regularly. Jackson said students still pick up trash when they’re not playing football at recess.
His mom, Brianna Gunter, said that her son holds strong convictions in what he cares about. “It could be Minecraft or this playground,” she said.
“It could be football,” Jackson added, explaining how he helps pick fair football teams on the playground during recess.
“He is incredibly intelligent, but also incredibly compassionate,” his mom said. “He has the strongest sense of justice. When things aren’t equal, he’s the first to call it out.”
Jackson’s grandmother, Barbara Augenreich, said she started seeing the social awareness in her grandson during the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Jackson has cousins who are biracial, she said, and once he began to learn that all people weren’t treated fairly, “he really took it to heart.”
“He made his little signs, and when Roanoke did their protest walk, he participated in his wagon with a friend,” Augenreich said. “So I think he has always been civic-minded.”
Brianna Gunter said she and her husband talk about community at home and tell Jackson, “what you can help, you have to help.” The family goes on walks to pick up trash, and they occasionally volunteer through their church or through Habitat for Humanity. But she thinks Jackson’s desire to be involved in his community is of his own doing.
“I don’t feel like our sense of community is [at] his level,” she said.
A third grader’s thoughts on the state of world affairs — “I just don’t like that. Stop.”
Jackson moved elementary schools to be a part of the Plato Program at Highland Park Elementary School, a charter program for gifted students, between second and third grade.
“I love both of my teachers so much,” he exclaimed, while his mom was explaining the Plato program. And then again, quietly so as to not interrupt her, “I love both of my teachers so much.”
Asked why, he said, “Because they make it challenging. And they’re really nice.” His favorite subject is math, he said, but he wishes he were allowed to do Sudoku puzzles in class.
Kiera McReynolds, one of his teachers at Highland Park, said in an email that he is “certainly a community oriented student.”
“He honors our Highland Hawk Pledge, ‘I take care of myself. I take care of others. I take care of this place.’ He is quick to share ideas for how to make our classroom and school a better place,” she wrote.
While Jackson’s interests line up with those of other 8-year-olds — playing Minecraft and baseball, looking forward to attending a “Weird Al” Yankovic concert — he’s in tune with what’s going on in the world.
He said as president, he’d like to be like President Barack Obama. He said there’s too much “attacking” in the world right now.
“We’re like, dropping bombs on random places that did nothing,” he said, his voice dropping. “I just don’t like that. Stop.”
Augenreich, who is a kindergarten teacher in Bedford County, said rather than letting Gunter watch the news, his parents talk to him about world events, “explaining to him that the world is sometimes unfair and unkind, and you do your part to do what you can do.”
Brianna Gunter said she and her son helped rescue a kitten a few months ago. Jackson added that they also helped a dog that ran across the street and was hurt.
Augenreich said she thinks kids are “on the screen” too much and see things that they don’t understand yet.
“So you teach them about it prior, and in a fashion that instills the values you want them to understand in it, instead of what they hear on the school bus,” she said of her family’s approach.
Brianna Gunter said she doesn’t remember having the kinds of goals that her son has when she was his age. He made a list of New Year’s resolutions this year, which included training for and running a 10K race. He also wants to finish two 5K races and some hiking.
“He always does things that I’m surprised by,” Brianna Gunter said. “We’re just in awe of him.”
