MONICA BLAKE-BEASLEY’S story could be the script for the ultimate comeback — brimming with tough decisions, unexpected turns, and growth that didn’t come easy. As a former police officer and now a local educator in Tullahoma, Blake-Beasley has walked through fire and come out stronger than ever. Every battle she’s faced is a lesson she now passes down, and adversity is a blueprint for empowerment.
Teaching, it seems, was always in her destiny.
Before his death, her father confided in community members, telling them she would pursue a teaching career.
“When I came back home, I had so many people tell me that for years, my dad had told them I was moving back to Tullahoma, and I was going to work for the school system,” she said.
He saw something in her well before she ever walked into a classroom, and today, she honors that vision by equipping
her students with real-world experience, opening doors to careers in criminal justice, and showing them what it truly means to serve.
Blake-Beasley creates an immersive, hands-on training ground where students gain real-world experience in criminal justice. They engage in mock trials, forensic analysis, and investigative techniques that build critical thinking and practical skills.
They visit local police stations, and occasionally, professionals come in to speak about their work. Blake-Beasley believes these experiences are crucial for showing her students how vast the field is and how many ways they can serve and empower their community.
Blake-Beasley also equips her students with critical self-protection skills.
Before she ever taught a class, Blake-Beasley served on the front lines of justice. Inspired by her veteran father, she pursued a degree at Lipscomb University and answered the call to serve in law enforcement. She thrived in the field and stood up for those who had no one else to lean on.
However, her time on the force ended in a heartbreaking and violent incident. While off duty, she was attacked and suddenly found herself on the other side of the system she had spent her career upholding.
Even when the odds were stacked against her, she stood her ground and took legal measures, resulting in a settlement.
After leaving law enforcement in 2019, she found herself at a crossroads. Then, a teaching position in criminal justice opened at Tullahoma High School, and it felt like fate. When her father died in 2020, the pull to come home grew even stronger. Her mother, battling illness, needed her, and Blake-Beasley knew it was time to give back to the community that raised her.
Her first day working for Tullahoma City Schools as an educator was on what would have been her father’s 64th birthday, which felt like confirmation and a tribute to the man who always believed she would end up there.
Her patience, compassion, and ability to guide people through their hardest moments — skills she developed on the force — now make her an extraordinary teacher.
Instead of protecting and serving through law enforcement, she now does so through education.
She believes teaching criminal justice requires showing students what it means to seek justice and to do the right thing even when it’s hard.
“What matters to me most is that the students are better humans when they leave my classroom than they were when they entered,” she said.
She challenges them to think critically, act with integrity, and use their voices for good.
Blake-Beasley understands the power of her presence. As one of the few African American educators at her school, she’s a role model who breaks down stereotypes and opens students’ eyes to different perspectives.
Blake-Beasley grew up in a family devoted to public service, built a career in law enforcement, and now shares her knowledge as an educator. Her life has come full circle, and each day in the classroom, she honors a legacy that shows the true measure of strength is based on those we serve. GN
