I have a little booklet I picked up at some point in my travels at a conference or bookstore. This quote booklet is organized by topics and titled Believe, Achieve Succeed, Words of Wisdom from African Americans.
The last section is about our future as seen through the lens of accomplished females, all African Americans. Female resiliency is recorded in each culture, generation and decade.
Basketball great and first female Harlem Globetrotter, Lynette Woodard said “Everyone has a gift. You let it take you as far as it can.” As an educator, I see so many students who don’t realize their gifts. It only takes one teacher or one administrator in their life to open their eyes to their “specialness.” This can happen at any age and in any situation. We all have a place in a child’s life. They are in our care. Use this power to help them realize their own gifts.
Astronaut Mae C. Jemison said “Don’t let anyone rob you of your imagination, your creativity or your curiosity. It’s your place in the world; it’s your life. Go on and do all you can with it and make it the life you want to live.” Trust comes from the position of an educator. Have you earned your student’s trust? Their openness to learning from us gives us a portal into encouraging their own imagination and creativity. This power must be used to provide a safe place to be curious. Teachers, counselors, secretaries and any adult in a school has this opportunity to mentor a child to know their life is their choice. Openly model the positive outcomes of “making your life the one you want to live.”
Civil Rights Activist, Rosa Parks said, “I believe we are here on the planet Earth to live, grow up and do what we can to make this world a better place for all people to enjoy freedom.” Look around your school or district. Is this the best it can be for the students? Ms. Parks saw the barriers and broke them down with a subtle, passionate drive to make a change by pointing out the right and wrong of the current societal barriers. These barriers are in your school. Stop walking by them and listen to the students. They will cast a spotlight on the current societal barriers they experience every day. An educator who is truly student-centered has an instinct for what is right and the tenacity to make the change.
Look in the mirror and notice your own complexity. Conversations about different and similar cultures, races and beliefs should happen early in each American’s life.
Be curious and interested in people who you see as different from you.
As a secondary teacher and principal, the more I learned about diverse cultures the more I realized all of my children were similar. In a way, this makes our jobs easier.
This wonderfully diverse mix of children is dependent on compassionate educators who are responsible for the self-efficacy and education of all students.
It’s what we do.
Blog and additional resources:
An Act of Courage, The Arrest Records of Rosa Parks, National Archives, https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/rosa-parks.
Believe, Achieve, Succeed. Words of Wisdom from African Americans, Positive Promotions, Item #ITP-113 (no date indicated).
Biography of Mae C. Jemison, NASA, retrieved February 1, 2021. https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/jemison_mae.pdf.
Biography of Rosa Parks, National Women’s History Museum, retrieved February 1, 2021.https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/rosa-parks.
Biography of Lynette Woodard, Basketball Reference, retrieved February 1, 2021. https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/players/w/woodaly01w.html.
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Hall of Famers. Retrieved February 1, 2021. https://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/lynette-woodard/.
National Education Association, Black History Month Lessons and Resources. Retrieved on February 1, 2021. https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/black-history-month-lessons-resources.
Parks, Rosa. Rosa Parks: My Story. New York: Puffin Books, 1999.
Theoharis, Jeanne. The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks. New York: Beacon Press, 2014.
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