Tag Archives: African American Teachers

NJ’s Carole Graves: Teacher, labor leader, and politician

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Retired Special Education teacher, labor leader, and politician Carole Graves of New Jersey labored during the Civil Rights Movement to improve working conditions for her fellow teachers. Photo credit: Ballotpedia.

There are many fine educators in our country who have labored diligently to improve the lives of others, not only the lives of their students, but also the working conditions of their colleagues. One of these is Carole Graves, a New Jersey teacher who also made great improvements for Newark public school teachers.

Carole was born on April 15, 1938, in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey. After her graduation from Arts High School in her home town, she enrolled at Newark State Teachers College, where she earned her degree in 1960. After college, Carole, accepted a position as a special education teacher at the Dayton Street School in Newark.  Later she earned a certificate in Labor and Management Relations from New Brunswick.

In 1971, Carole gained national recognition when she led the Newark teachers in a highly controversial strike that lasted 13 weeks. During the job action, over 200 teachers were jailed, and Carole herself served six months in the Essex County Jail. Her sacrifice was not in vain. The contract settlement that resulted in her efforts contained unprecedented contract gains, recognition of teachers’ rights, and improved working conditions for teachers, aides, and clerks in the Newark Public Schools. Carole went on to serve as the full-time President of the Newark Teachers Union, a position she held for 27 years.

Once she completed her work for the teachers’ union, Carole was elected on the Democratic ticket to serve as the Essex County Registrar of Deeds and Mortgages. She held this position for three terms, from 1995 to 2010. For a time she also served as a commissioner on the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) and an adjunct professor of Labor Relations at Essex County College and Rutgers Institute of Labor and Management Relations.

Now 83 years old, this Chalkboard Champion currently lives in Newark.

Covid-19 claims life of South Carolina teacher Jackqueline Lowery

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Sadly, we report that middle school science teacher Jackqueline Lowery of Darlington, South Carolina, succumbed to Covid-19 on Sept. 18, 2021. Photo credit: Mitchell-Josey Funeral Home.

With great sadness we report that Covid-19 has claimed the life of yet another beloved educator. Jacqueline Lowery, a middle school teacher from Darlington, South Carolina, succumbed to the disease on Sept. 18, 2021. She was just 28 years old.

The fallen educator was a graduate of Mayo High School for Math, Science, and Technology, where she graduated in 2011. While a student there, Jackqueline was a member of the Beta Club and the National Honor’s Society. In addition, she graduated Magna Cum Laude and was awarded the prestigious Heart of The Phoenix Award.

After her high school graduation, Jackqueline continued her studies at Francis Marion University. While there, she participated in several organizations. She was elected Vice President of the Student Government Association, the President of the Senate, the Vice President of the National Pan Hellenic Council, the Treasurer of The Award Winning Francis Marion YGB Gospel Choir, and the Chaplain and Treasurer of the Esteemed Xi Omicron Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. In May 2016, Jackqueline completed the requirements for her Bachelor’s degree in Biology with minors in Chemistry and Literature. She was also working on her Master’d degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Phoenix at the time of her passing.

Once she completed her education, Jackqueline inaugurated her career as a teacher at Darlington Middle School in Darlington County School District. She taught science to seventh graders and also served her school as the Head Volleyball Coach. According to those who knew her, Jackqueline had a passion for each and every student that she encountered, and she believed that every life mattered.

Jackqueline had declined to get a vaccination because she was breast-feeding her nine-month-old son and was unsure how the vaccination would affect her child.

Justin Johnson named Illinois’ 2021 Teacher of the Year

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Music educator Justin Johnson from Skokie, Illinois, has been named his state’s 2021 Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Niles Township High School.

It is always exciting when talented educators are recognized for their work in the classroom. One of these is Justin Johnson, a music teacher from Skokie, Illinois, who has been named his state’s 2021 Teacher of the Year.

Currently, Justin serves as the Director of Bands at Niles West High School in Skokie. There he has a reputation for being a kind, caring role model who always has the students’ best interests in mind, says Dr. Karen Ritter, Principal of Niles West. “Mr. Johnson is everything the Teacher of the Year Award represents,” she asserted. “He is an intense instructor who is so in tune with his students and their needs and brings them all together in an ensemble setting,” she continued. “When I visited Mr. Johnson’s classroom last year, I felt that I could spend the whole day there. I would have loved to have had a teacher like Justin Johnson,” she concluded.

In addition to his classroom responsibilities, Justin has served on several nationally recognized ensembles, including the Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps, a position he held for over a decade and the US Army All-American Marching Band. He has adjudicated and coordinated clinics for concert ensembles, marching bands, indoor drumlines, winter guards, and jazz ensembles throughout the country. He is also an active member of the Illinois Music Education Association and the National Association for Music Education.

For his work in the classroom, Justin has earned many accolades. In addition to the 2021 Illinois Teacher of the Year, he was named a finalist for the Golden Apple Award in 2016 and a Teacher of Distinction the same year. In 2020,  he garnered Niles West High School’s Zemsky Teacher of the Year Award.

Justin earned his Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee. He earned his Master’s degree in Music Education from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois.

 

Oklahoma’s Maude Brockway: Teacher and social activist

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Oklahoma Territory teacher Maude Brockway worked tirelessly to improve social conditions for others. Photo credit: Public Domain.

Often times, hardworking educators dedicate their energy and talent to the improvement of social conditions for others. Maude Brockway, an African American teacher from Oklahoma, is one of these.

Maude was born on February 28, 1876, in Clark County, Arkansas. She was raised in Curtis, where she attended the Arkadelphia Presbyterian Academy, an elementary and secondary school founded to educate the children for former slaves. The school was operated under the auspices of the Presbyterian Board of Missions for Freedmen. Later Maude enrolled at Arkansas Baptist College located in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Once she completed her education, Maude moved to Indian Territory in Oklahoma, where she worked as a teacher in Ardmore and Berwyn in the Chickasaw Nation. Later she opened a hat-making business. In 1910, Maude relocated to Oklahoma City, then still part of the Oklahoma Territory. There she became involved in an activist movement that furthered the interests of African American citizens in the city. She was particularly active in the Black Clubwomen’s Movement in her area. This movement took place throughout the United States, functioning under the founding philosophy that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy.

As part of her work as an activist, Maude founded the Oklahoma Training School for Women and Girls in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. This school was later known as the Drusilla Dunjee Houston Training School. Later she established the Brockway Community Center in Oklahoma City. The center offered training courses, well-baby clinics, a daycare center, and a women’s health center which included a birth control clinic.

Sadly, Maude Brockway succumbed to a heart attack on October 24, 1959, in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, while attending a the state convention of the Women’s Auxiliary of the state Baptist Convention. At the time, the Chalkboard Champion was 83 years old. To read more about her, see this link to The Black Dispatch.

Former foster child Anthony Swann named 2021 VA Teacher of the Year

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Former foster child Anthony Swann has been named the 2021 Virginia State Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: wsls.com.

I always enjoy sharing stories about dedicated educators who have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Anthony Swann, who has been named the 2021 Virginia State Teacher of the Year.

Anthony overcame many obstacles on his journey to becoming a teacher. As a youngster, he lived the life of a foster child, remaining part of the system until he was 21 years old. He was 11 years old when he decided to become a teacher.

Despite his obstacles, in 2007 Anthony earned his Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Averett University, a private university located in Danville, Virginia. In 2014, he earned his Master’s degree in Educational Leadership at Regent University, a private university located in Virginia Beach.

Currently, Anthony teaches fifth grade mathematics and reading at Rocky Mount Elementary School. He says his philosophy of teaching is to be emotionally open with his students. “I get on their level. I have never raised my voice at my children,” he said. “I don’t just care for them in the classroom, I care for them outside as well,” he continued. “They find my room a safe haven and they have an open line of communication with me,” he concluded.

In addition to his work in the classroom, Anthony mentors students and serves as a life-skills coach for fifth-grade boys through a program he inaugurated in 2019 called Guys with Ties. Every other week, the students dress to impress and participate in activities to learn the importance of integrity, honesty, and respect. Anthony also helped develop Rocky Mount Elementary’s Cooperative Culture Initiative, a program that rewards students for their positive behavior. The program has not only improved overall school culture, but it has reduced disciplinary referrals.

To read more about Chalkboard Champion Anthony Swann, see this article published in Virginia Black Lifestyle Magazine.