Glenside resident Shameeka Browne is a mother of five, business owner, and teacher who has recently added another accomplishment to her resume: author. Browne’s new book, *Queen of 24*, tells her personal story while also highlighting her passion for math.
She hopes that her book, along with her business, Math is All Around Us LLC, will help children and their parents gain a deeper understanding of math. Through her endeavors and business, Browne aspires to open a space for teachers who want to try out new activities to teach math to their students and see if the exercises will work in the classroom.
“I see that there is a greater need for families to be empowered with how they can help their child with their math education,” she said. “The great thing about passion is it becomes contagious, but it just can’t be the passion, it also has to be the love for the young people that are sitting in front of you.”
Browne credits her love for math to one of her teachers at Wagner Middle School, Mr. Plummer, who is also featured in the book. She plans to release five more books, each focusing on the varying age groups of her five children, from preschool to college.
“I want to help families understand the roles that they have in their child’s math education,” Browne explained. “It truly does start at home, and the math that your child sees from the time that they wake up in the morning to the time that they go to bed at night — we can take advantage of that.”
During the writing and creative process, Browne faced several challenges. Uncertainty about having enough money to publish, fear that her story was not worthy of being published, and a publisher terminating their contract just two weeks before she was supposed to reveal the book cover to her family and supporters left her with feelings of inadequacy.
“I’m a math person, and it’s ironic that I put myself in the same position that I tell my students not to do,” Browne said. “When they say they are not math people, I prove to them that they are. But on the flip side, I was telling myself that I wasn’t a writer because who could be both? I can be both.”
Browne was able to find an illustrator who could adequately reflect the story she was telling: Philly native Reggie Byers, who had also done some artwork at Wagner Middle School.
“I look at the cover, and I want to cry,” Browne shared. “What was different about this illustrator was that I did not send him any pictures other than a picture of myself during that time in middle school and my family. When I tell you I saw the cover and said, ‘This looks like me.’”
Before its official release to the public, Browne sold over 200 copies of *Queen of 24*—a remarkable feat for most first-time authors. The book is currently available for purchase at [www.mathisallaroundus.org](http://www.mathisallaroundus.org).
She continues to help the next generation find their love and passion for math as a math specialist and content lead in the Lower Merion School District.
“Her passion for math is omnipresent in much of what she does and sees,” said Jameelah Hairston, a Glenside resident. “She challenges you to see how math is everywhere and present in many everyday activities and tasks.”
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