Tag Archives: African American Teachers

Sarah Lee Brown Fleming: Teacher, activist, and author

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Sarah Lee Brown Fleming

Sarah Lee Brown Fleming

There are many accomplished educators in American history who have distinguished themselves as community activists. Sarah Lee Brown Fleming, a school teacher from Brooklyn, New York, is one such educator.

Sarah Lee Brown was born in poverty in Charleston, South Carolina, on January 10, 1875. She was raised in Brooklyn, New York. As a young girl, Sarah dreamed of becoming a school teacher. However, her father discouraged this goal, believing that Sarah could only aspire to be a domestic. Little did he know that one day, Sarah would become the first African American teacher in the Brooklyn public school system.

In 1902, Sarah married Richard Stedman Fleming. After their marriage, the couple moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where Richard became the first African American dentist to practice in the state. The union produced two children: a daughter named Dorothy born in 1903, and a son named Harold born in 1906.

An associate of Mary McLeod Bethune, Sarah channeled her energy into bettering the educational opportunities for African American women. She organized the New Haven Women’s Civic League in 1929, and in 1936, she established the Phillis Wheatley Home for Girls, a shelter for young Black women who had just moved to New Haven in search of employment. In fact, Sarah’s work was recognized by Congress in 1955, the same year she received the Sojourner Truth Scroll from the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Club.

In addition to her civic work, Sarah was also a published playwright, novelist, and poet named as part of the Harlem Renaissance movement. Sarah’s most notable published works are her novel Hope’s Highway, published in 1918, and a collection of poems entitled Clouds and Sunshine, published in 1920.

Sarah passed away in January, 1963, five days before her 87th birthday.

Clarence Acox, Jr.: Music instructor extraordinaire

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There are many gifted musicians who share their extensive talents with fortunate students in the classroom. One such musician is Clarence Acox, Jr., a high school music teacher and jazz musician who resides in Seattle, Washington.

Clarence was born in October, 1947, in New Orleans. As a youngster, he attended Joseph S. Clark Preparatory High School in Treme, Louisiana. After his high school graduation, he enrolled at Southern University, a historically Black university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He graduated in 1971.

After his college commencement, the young graduate accepted a position as a music instructor at Garfield High School in Seattle, Washington. Famed musicians Jimi Hendrix, Ishmael Butler, Quincy Jones, and Ernestine Anderson are all Garfield alumni. Under Clarence’s capable leadership, the high school’s Jazz Ensemble has captured the first place title two times at New York’s Essentially Ellington National Jazz Band Competition and Festival at New York City’s Lincoln Center (2003, 2004). This competition is the nation’s most prestigious high school jazz band competition. Additionally, under his expert tutelage, the Garfield High School Band has traveled to Europe on eleven tours, attending music festivals in Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, and the Netherlands.

In addition to his work in the classroom, Clarence performs regularly on the jazz nightclub scene in Seattle. He is a member of the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra, which he co-founded in 1995 with Michael Brockman, a saxophone instructor with the University of Washington. In addition, Clarence is the director of the Jazz Ensemble representing Seattle University.

For his outstanding work in the classroom, Clarence has earned many prestigious awards. In 1991, he was honored as the Musician of the Year by the Earshot Jazz Society of Seattle. He was named Educator of the Year by Down Beat Magazine in 2001, and in 2003 he garnered the Impact Award by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), an organization best known for presenting the Grammy Awards each year. In 2004, Clarence was named Outstanding Music Educator by the Seattle Music Educators Association, and in 2011, he was inducted into the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association Hall of Fame. Additionally, in May, 2016, Clarence was recognized with an Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle.

To learn more about this remarkable educator and musician, click on JazzJournalists.org or BlackPast.org.

Brittney Marie Miller: The Middle School English Teacher Serves in the Nevada State Legislature

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Many gifted classroom teachers go on to become successful politicians. One of these is Brittney Marie Miller, a middle school English teacher who now serves in the Nevada State Assembly.

Brittney was born in 1974 in Detroit, Michigan. Her father, a former Marine who served in Viet Nam, was a police sergeant in Detroit. Her mother, a former civilian employee for the US Army Tank Arsenal, was a registered nurse.

Brittney earned her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Saginaw Valley State University located in University Center, Michigan. She has two master’s degrees: one in public administration from Oakland University located in the cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Michigan, and the other in teaching from Sierra Nevada College, Incline Village, Nevada.

For the past six years, Brittney has taught Language Arts at Canarelli Middle School in the Clark County School District in Nevada. “After years developing programs in public schools, work force development, and prisoner re-entry, I knew that becoming a teacher was one more way I could serve,” Brittney once said. “Indeed, I reduced my salary by over a third when I became a teacher, but that’s how passionate and devoted I am to service. I believe strongly in education. To build a future, we must invest in our children first,” she added.

In 2017, Brittney was elected to represent District 5 in the Nevada State Assembly, where she still serves. She succeeded Republican Assemblyman Erv Nelson who resigned from his post to run for the state Senate. As a representative, Brittney is a member of four committees: Education; Corrections, Parole, and Probation; Health and Human Services; and Judiciary.

To learn more about this accomplished chalkboard champion, check out this interview by Nevada Public Radio or her profile at Project Vote Smart.

Mississippi’s Doug Anderson: The Former Teacher and Legislator Who Championed Historically Black Colleges

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Many talented classroom teachers have gone on to successful careers in politics. This is certainly true of Douglas Leavon Anderson, a mathematics teacher who served as a very capable politician in both the Senate and the House of Representatives in his home state of Mississippi.

Doug was born in 1939, the 11th of 12 children in his family. He earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Dillard University, a private historically Black liberal Arts college located in New Orleans, Louisiana. He earned his master’s degree from Oklahoma University, a public research university situated in Norman, Oklahoma.

Doug’s career as an educator spanned the years 1965 to 1987. He taught in the Meridian Public School system in Meridian, Mississippi, and in his home town of Jackson, Mississippi. He was also an associate professor of mathematics at Jackson State University from 1965 to 1987.

In 1976, Doug was elected on the Democratic ticket to represent District 27 in the Mississippi State House of Representatives. There he served until 1980, serving on the committee for public health and welfare and the committee for universities and colleges. In 1980, Doug was elected to the Mississippi State Senate, where he served until 1992, serving on the committees for the state budget, the judiciary, and universities and colleges. While in office, the former teacher was an active and outspoken advocate for historically Black colleges. In 1993, Doug joined the Hinds County Board of Supervisors, where he served for 19 years. In all, this amazing chalkboard champion devoted more than 36 years of his life to public service.

Doug passed away from complications from diabetes on April 13, 2013, at the age of 74. He was interred at Garden Memorial Cemetery in Jackson. To read more about this accomplished educator, see the Mississippi State Resolution 507 or the Doug Anderson Obituary.

Educator William Henry Spencer: He Worked Tirelessly for Georgia’s African American Students

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In our nation’s history, there are many fine examples of African American educators who have worked tirelessly to provide quality education to Black students. William Henry Spencer was one such educator.

William was born on September 21, 1857, in the city of Columbus in Muscogee County, Georgia. He was one of eight children of a local blacksmith. As a youngster, William attended Asbury Chapel, a Columbus public school which served African American students. In his later years, this lifelong learner enrolled in Clark College, a historically Black private college located in Atlanta, Georgia.

William gained his teaching certificate in 1875 and inaugurated his teaching career in Harris County schools. Before long, he transferred to the city school system in his home town of Columbus. For the next fifty years, William dedicated himself to improving the curriculum of segregated schools, and he worked diligently to establish courses in fine arts and vocational practices. Because of his expertise, he was selected as the Supervisor of the Colored Schools in Muscogee County, a position he held from 1912 to 1925. During this time, William’s passion was to establish an accredited high school for African American students in Columbus. His dream was finally realized with the opening of a new facility on November 29, 1930. The school was named William Henry Spencer High School in his honor.

Sadly, William did not live long enough to see the realization of his goal. This chalkboard champion died of complications of appendicitis on May 30, 1925.