The history of African American educators is one of resilience, dedication, and a relentless pursuit of equality. From the shadows of slavery to the forefront of the civil rights movement, these educators have played a pivotal role in shaping the lives of countless individuals and communities.
Students at the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Virginia, c1899
Early Education During Slavery and Segregation
African-American teachers educated African Americans and taught each other to read during slavery in the South. Since teaching those enslaved to read was a crime (see Slave codes), people who were enslaved ran small schools in secret. Meanwhile, in the North, African Americans worked alongside Whites.
During the post-Reconstruction era African Americans built their own schools so they did not have White control. The Black middle class believed that it could provide quality education for their community. This resulted in the foundation of teaching as a profession for Blacks. Some Black families had multiple individuals who dedicated their lives to teaching. They felt that they could empower their communities.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Southern States passed Jim Crow laws to mandate racial segregation in all aspects of society, and prevent Blacks from voting. Racism made it difficult for Black professionals to work in other professions. The Great Depression in the 1930s had a dramatic economic impact among Southern Black Americans. This resulted in the degradation of segregated Black schools.
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African Americans were deteriorating economically and pled for integration, in hopes of making more resources available. Desegregation resulted in the closure of Black schools and the loss of most jobs for African-American teachers by federal enforcement of a series of Supreme Court decisions following Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. Whites did not want their children taught by Black teachers. The African-American communities lost their leaders and role models.
Map of Jim Crow Laws
The 19th Century: A Time of Advocacy and Education
During the 19th century in the United States, African-American advocates and educators began to teach across the states. Slavery in the United States was abolished in mid 19th century and allowed for the establishment and push for education among black communities. Education varied in the North and the South yet prominent figures wrote speeches and fought for equal education.
The history of education during the 19th century is often divided into two periods: the time of slavery to the rise of insurrection movements (1835) - a time where people were often asked whether "it was prudent to educate the slaves". Secondly, when abolitionist were fighting to end slavery and offer education to "cultivate" the minds of those enslaved. The early-advocates of the education for African-Americans were those who masters who wanted to increase the economic efficiency of their labor supply, sympathetic persons who wished to help the oppressed, and zealous missionaries who taught people who were enslaved, English in hopes they learn the principles of the Christian religion.
Freedman school, missions and churches were some of the first few spaces enslaved people were encouraged to start school. The intentions of these institutions were muffled (See Freedmen's Bureau). Such exposure to education allowed others to see the benefits of educated enslaved people. Education was a recurring subject in the pre-civil war era and can be cited to be a subject of interest at the 1843 National Convention of Colored Citizens.
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Early efforts highlight the importance of eliminating inequality and education being a tool to succeed that. The African-American struggle for education was rooted in the desire to bring about social and political equality and to defeat racial prejudice. After the American Civil War, there were localized efforts to establish schools and create school systems.
Later-advocates of education were characterized, specifically women educational advocates, as fighting for eradicating prejudice and promoting Christian love, training black women and men to be educator-activist who would fight for civil rights, and, lastly, cultivating moral and intellectual character in children and youth. The shift turned to a focus of community. Ongoing constraints limited educators from teaching in the classroom. It was common for school districts to obstruct black educators by placing mandated teacher trainings only available to white educators.
In order to battle certain expectations and eliminate the prejudice that black educators faced, many employed a strategy that called for the emphasis of Christian Ideals. Additionally, many of the Black educators that championed for equal access to education were also fighting for gender equality (See Black feminism#19th century).
Notable Figures in African American Education
Many times, whilst teaching, the women would be exempt or have to step away from their roles in order to speak freely about the racial, classist, and sexist injustices plaguing the black community. Aside from being activist during the nineteenth century, these notable figures also saw the importance in teaching. After the Fugitive Slave Act was passed in 1850, Mary Ann Shad Cary moved to Canada in a community predominantly black.
Anna Julia Cooper took steps to gain access to classes only available to men at the university she attended. Cooper also obtained her PhD from the University of Paris-Subbron. In papers, she often hit on the theme of education and its impact. Ann Plato - An educator who published a collection of essays and prose. In her work, she calls to action educators and the nation to ensure that children seek education-and those capable, pursue higher education to teach the future generations. Little is known about Plato aside from her published works.
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Ida B. Early in her career, Ida B. Wells Barnett was an elementary school teacher in Memphis Tennessee. She started teaching at the age of fourteen. While teaching, Barnett began her own newspaper titled Free Speech that cost her the teaching position.
An educator from Georgia that works at many schools across the state until founding the Haines Institute in Augusta. There she serves as the principal of the school. Still, she publishes work regarding the role of women and the power and influence that can be obtained through education. She encourages woman to work and pursue school in order to gain status. The legacy of notable black women educators is able to be preserved through their own narratives and works.
Here are twelve Black educators who made a huge impact on history:
- Rita Pierson: Gave a powerful Ted Talk on education - “Every Child Needs a Champion” and led workshops on educating young African American boys.
- Carlotta Walls LaNier: As the youngest member of the Little Rock Nine, she braved harassment to be one of the first Black students to attend Central High School in 1960.
- Charlotte Forten Grimke: The first Black teacher to work at the Penn School in South Carolina, she later helped recruit Black educators for the US Treasury Department.
- Kelly Miller: The first Black graduate student in Mathematics, he became a dean at Howard University and pushed for access to higher education for Black Americans.
- Fanny Jackson Coppin: The first African American principal, she dedicated her life to lifting her race out of ignorance and degradation.
- Inez Beverly Prosser: The first Black woman to earn a Ph.D. in Psychology, she researched the effect of segregated schools on African American students.
- Dr. Jeanne L. Noble: A professor of education, she was appointed by three presidents to serve on educational commissions and worked to desegregate her hometown.
- Mary McLeod Bethune: Founded Bethune-Cookman college and became the highest-ranking African American woman in government under President Franklin Roosevelt.
- Septima Poinsette Clark: Fought to get public schools in Charleston to hire African American teachers and helped run citizenship schools for voter registration.
- Marva Collins: Started Westside Preparatory School and trained thousands of educators on her techniques focused on the Socratic method.
- Edmund Gordon: A founder of the federal Head Start program, he focused on closing the academic achievement gap.
- Charles Hamilton Houston: Played a crucial role in dismantling segregation through his legal work with the NAACP and the Supreme Court.
Known as the first African American in the United States to graduate from college, Alexander Twilight grew up in Vermont and was the son of a veteran of the American Revolution. Despite being forced to work on a farm as an indentured servant, he graduated from Middlebury College in 1823. Alexander became a teacher and continued his education, studying to join the Christian ministry as a pastor.
Dr. Carter G. Woodson launched Negro History Week in the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The concept of celebrating and telling the stories of African Americans would later become Black History Month. He also founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH).
Mary McLeod Bethune was an American educator, civil rights activist, and founder of the National Council of Negro Women. She led several African American women’s organizations in her time, including the National Association for Colored Women and the National Youth Administration’s Negro Division. She co-founded the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), now known as the United Fund, which distributes scholarships and provides mentoring and job opportunities to African American students attending historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
After her parents tried to enroll her into Sumner Elementary School and were denied admission, her family joined 13 other families in a class action lawsuit brought to the court by the NAACP. The rest is history!
Guion S. Bluford is a retired astronaut and was the first African American to travel into space in 1979. He later served as a member of the Board of Visitors for the United States Air Force Academy, advocating for more diversity and inclusion in the military and higher education.
What Is The Historical Impact Of Liberal Arts On Civil Rights? - Black Education Success Network
Barbara A. Futrell is a former educator and union leader who served as the president of the National Education Association (NEA), the largest teachers’ union in the United States. During her tenure, she worked to promote equal educational opportunities for all students and address discrimination and inequality issues in the education system, particularly for women and students of color.
When our founders were developing the OneGoal classroom model, they took inspiration from the legacy left by the College Preparation & Placement Program at Ada S. McKinley Community Center, pioneered by the late Silas Purnell. For 35 years, students came by word of mouth to his office in the Dearborn Homes housing development basement in Chicago, looking for a better future. Silas convinced college administrators to grant scholarships to promising young people who didn’t quite fit the standard college admissions profile. Silas and his supporters would string together funds to help students purchase books, clothes, plane tickets - whatever was needed to eliminate the financial barriers of college enrollment. This grassroots effort is believed to have been the largest college placement program in the US at points during Salis’ tenure. The spirit of this early college access program is part of the OneGoal DNA.
Carter G. Woodson, the "Father of Black History"
Seven Black Male Educators Who Changed History
Throughout history, Black male educators have played a major role in shaping education, advancing civil rights, and challenging academic barriers. From founding institutions to pioneering research, we honor the impactful contributions of these seven Black male educators. May their efforts highlight the transformative potential of education.
- Octavius V. Catto: A civil rights activist, educator, and leader in Philadelphia who dedicated his life to advancing the rights of African Americans.
- Kelly Miller: The first Black graduate student in Mathematics from Howard University and a professor who became the first person at Howard to teach Sociology.
- Carter G. Woodson: A scholar whose dedication to celebrating the historic contributions of Black people led to the establishment of Black History Month.
- Charles Hamilton Houston: A lawyer, educator, and civil rights activist involved with almost every civil rights case between 1930 and 1954, earning him the nickname “The Man Who Killed Jim Crow.”
- Antonio M. Smith: An educator, entrepreneur, and civil rights activist from Texarkana, Texas, who played a key role in civil rights and promoting black economic empowerment and voter registration.
- Dr. Edmund Gordon: A pioneering psychologist whose work has profoundly influenced education, psychology, and social policy, especially for underserved children of color.
- Dr. Ramon Goings: An Associate Professor at UMBC and the founder of Done Dissertation®, focusing on the experiences of high-achieving Black males and diversifying the teacher workforce.
Many influential Black educators throughout history have played crucial roles in improving the world, yet they often remain underrepresented. Despite systemic barriers and persistent racial inequities, they have been leaders using education as a tool to inspire change for future generations. It is important to recognize the impact they made for future generations and to remind us of the power of perseverance and the importance of standing up for what’s right.
Key Figures and Their Contributions
- Booker T. Washington: Founded the Tuskegee Institute, emphasizing vocational training as a means of empowering Black Americans.
- Mary McLeod Bethune: Founded the Bethune-Cookman College and served as an advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
- W.E.B. Du Bois: Advocated for the “Talented Tenth” and co-founded the NAACP.
- Carter G. Woodson: Known as the “Father of Black History,” he founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) and established Black History Month.
More than ever, it is so important to highlight the achievements of Black educators in the teaching profession. Not only is it crucial to give them long-overdue recognition, but it also helps to remind us of how far the educational system has come - and far we have left to go. As educators, we should be at the forefront of acknowledging how much the Black community has endured being an active part of the American education system.
These leaders prove teachers have the power to change history. At Bryan University, we provide an inclusive educational experience through our core belief that all students can succeed.
