The Power of Mentorship—Sheryl Hawkins

By Chad Laws (AES Communications Specialist)

When Sheryl Hawkins (Bridgewater, Class of '69) arrived in Delhi at age 14, she stepped off the plane into a swirl of heat, color, and the unmistakable scent of adventure. Her father had joined the U.S. Foreign Service, posted to India at a time when Delhi was buzzing with diplomatic and cultural activity. It was the Cold War era—an international city filled with embassies, USAID, Ford Foundation families, and hundreds of Americans navigating a changing world. “We didn’t realize how important the Delhi post was at the time,” Sheryl recalls. “Only later did we understand just how much history was unfolding around us.”

That global backdrop shaped Sheryl’s perspective—and so did her years at the American International School (then AIS). She and her twin sister dove headfirst into music, theater, ballet, and costume design. They performed in musicals like Kiss Me Kate and Where’s Charlie?, and choreographed routines. “We worshipped our teachers,” she says. “Mr. Adams, our music teacher, mentored every student who had an interest. The stage became my training ground.”

That mentorship didn’t just spark hobbies. It laid the foundation for Sheryl’s multifaceted career as a fashion designer, jazz singer, touring musician, and longtime international school music teacher.

The Making of a Global Artist

India lit the spark for Sheryl’s lifelong creativity. Sewing costumes for school events evolved into a passion for fashion design—eventually leading her and her sister to launch Africafabra, a company featuring bold cotton batik fabrics. They recently attended the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) event in Japan, with the participation of 40 African nations, and successfully created collaborative projects for their Africafabra company with several African nations.

Music, though, became her passport to the world. After college, Sheryl played keyboards for the Stylistics, a world-renowned rhythm and blues vocal group, touring internationally at a time when few women musicians traveled with such groups. “I watched everything—choreography, stage presence, performance. They were mentors too. Touring felt natural because AIS had already given me the confidence and adaptability to thrive in a high-mobility lifestyle.”

Later, she studied for five years with legendary jazz pianist and composer Mary Lou Williams, supported by a National Endowment for the Arts grant. “The most important part of mentorship,” Sheryl reflects, “isn’t just learning technique—it’s absorbing wisdom. Mary Lou taught me to see the world differently, to wait my turn, and to trust that greatness unfolds with patience.”

Paying It Forward

For 25 years, Sheryl served as a music teacher at international schools in Japan, choreographing musicals, coaching student performers, and guiding young musicians who reminded her of herself. “I’ve been so fortunate with my mentors,” she says. “They shaped who I am. And that’s why I’ve worked to be that mentor for others.”

Her circle of mentors has always included family, too. Her sister-in-law, Grammy-winning jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater, has been another source of inspiration. “I’ve learned so much from her—not just about music, but about resilience, creativity, and life itself.”

Lessons for Today’s Students

Sheryl worries that today’s generation doesn’t always recognize the transformative power of mentorship. “Young people today often don’t understand what a gift it is to learn from someone else’s wisdom,” she says. “Phones can distract from the creative thinking we developed by fully engaging with our environment and mentors.” What she carries most from her years in Delhi and at AIS is flexibility, cultural appreciation, and a belief in the primacy of creativity. “Those are the things that carried me through university, through business, through music. They’ve carried me through life.”

Full Circle

From the Oberoi neighborhood near the Delhi Zoo to jazz stages across the world, Sheryl’s story is a vivid reminder of how formative experiences at AES ripple outward for decades. The friendships forged in the late ’60s, the musicals staged on campus, the mentors who pushed her to grow—all of it built the foundation for a life defined by artistry, courage, and giving back.

“I don’t think I’d be who I am without the mentors I had,” Sheryl says. “And that’s the greatest lesson of all: mentorship is the bridge between who we are and who we can become.”