Tag Archives: African American Teachers

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.

Former teacher Rebecca Pringle serves as NEA President

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Former Pennsylvania middle school teacher and current President of the National Education Association Rebecca Pringle works tirelessly to improve conditions in schools for both teachers and students. Photo credit: NEA

A former Pennsylvania educator who now serves as the current President of the National Education Association works tirelessly to improve conditions in schools for both teachers and students. She is Rebecca Pringle, who has logged an extensive career as a middle school science teacher.

Rebecca was born in 1955 in Philadelphia.  As a young girl, she attended Philadelphia High School for girls, one of the city’s most prestigious magnet schools. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her Master’s degree from Pennsylvania State University.

Once she completed her education, Rebecca taught middle school science in the Susquehanna Township School District for 28 years. In total, her career in the classroom spans 31 years.

Throughout the years she served as a classroom teacher, Rebecca also served in a number of roles in the NEA, an organization that currently serves three million members nationwide. Her first position was Secretary/Treasurer. In 2014, she was elected NEA’s Vice President. In 2020, Rebecca assumed the mantle of President. This position earns Rebecca the title of the highest-ranking African American female labor leader in America. In this role, the indefatigable union leader has worked tirelessly to limit federal testing requirements, increased funding for schools, greater equity for students, and to make teacher evaluation and accountability practices more fair.

For her work on behalf of fellow educators, Rebecca has earned many accolades. She is a recipient of the National Peace Medal for Leader of Educational Excellence; a recipient of the Black Women’s Roundtable Education Innovation & Social Justice Leadership Award from the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation; the Woman of Power Award from the National Action Network; and she was named Community Woman of the Year by the American Association of University Women. For her efforts on behalf of teachers nationwide, President Barack Obama selected Rebecca to be a member of the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. Her work on the Commission included addressing issues on teacher recruitment and retention, STEM access and opportunities, and college preparation and completion.

To read more about this Chalkboard Champion, see this biography of her published on the website of the NEA.

Educator Lois Carson worked tirelessly for the underprivileged

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Many educators have dedicated their entire careers to helping underprivileged segments of society. This is the case with Lois Carson, who served the African American and lower-income communities all her life. Photo credit: San Bernardino Valley College

There are many talented and dedicated classroom educators who have dedicated their entire careers to helping underprivileged segments of society. This is certainly the case with Lois Carson, a long-time teacher who served the African American and lower-income communities all her life.

Lois was born in Memphis, Tennessee, where she attended St. Augustine Catholic High School. As the valedictorian of her school, she won several scholarships, including a prestigious scholarship from the United Negro College Fund. After her high school graduation, Lois enrolled in Wilberforce University, the first private historically Black university in America.

After her marriage, Lois relocated with her husband to Southern California. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English from Cal State San Bernardino (CSUSB) in 1967. That year, she was a member the first graduating class of the campus. Later, she earned two Master’s degrees, one in English and one in Education, from the University of California, Riverside (UCR).

Lois accepted her first position as a teacher for Upward Bound through the UCR. Upward Bound is an organization that helps low-income high school students prepare for college. Later Lois served as a Director of the organization, and she also served a stint as the Deputy Director of the San Bernardino County Community Action Partnership. She also served as an Executive Director of a similar organization in Riverside County. While there, Lois built partnerships with organizations and networks that served low-income families, including the Riverside County Consortium for Early Learning Services and the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition.

For 24 years, Lois serve on the San Bernardino Community College District Board, including seven years on the national board of the Association of Community College Trustees. While in that position, Lois worked tirelessly to increase access by minority students to the nursing program. In fact, she was selected as the top trustee in the United States by that organization.

As if all this were not enough, Lois found time to establish the San Bernardino County Status of Women Commission, the Inland Empire section of the National Council of Negro Women, the Ladies Auxiliary of the Knights of Peter Claver, and Black Future Leaders.

For her tireless work as a public servant, Lois received the Lyndon Baines Johnson Human Services Award in 2007. The following year she was named Woman of the Year in California’s 62nd District by Assemblywoman Wilmer Amina Carter. She has also been honored as a Distinguished Alumna by bother CSUSB and UCR. Also, she was inducted into the San Bernardino Valley College (SBVC) Alumni Hall of Fame in 1997.

Sadly, Lois Carson passed away on July 14, 2021. She was 90 years old. To read more about her, see this biography published about her by SBVC.