Tag Archives: Civil Rights Activists

Virginia’s Clara Byrd Baker: Talented teacher, civic leader, and suffragette

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Clara Byrd Baker

Clara Byrd Baker: Talented teacher, civic leader, and suffragette.

There are many fine examples of talented classroom teachers who have worked tirelessly to improve social conditions in their community. One such teacher is Clara Byrd Baker, an elementary school teacher from Virginia who has earned a reputation as an outstanding civic leader and suffragette.

Clara was born on June 22, 1886, in Williamsburg, Virginia. Her parents were Charles and Malvina Carey Byrd. As a young woman, Clara enrolled in Hampton Institute. She also attended Virginia State College for Negroes, now known as Virginia State College, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Education. She was only 16 years old at the time.

After earning her degree, Clara launched her career as an educator in 1902 when she accepted a position as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse in James City County, Virginia. In 1920, she became a teacher at a public training school for African American students. Later, she joined the faculty at Bruton Heights School in Williamsburg. After a career in the classroom that spanned an amazing 50 years, Clara retired in 1952.

Throughout her life, even during the years she taught school, Clara served as a leader in Williamsburg’s African American community. She worked to expand educational opportunities for students, to improve inter-racial relations, and to secure the vote for women. In fact, after the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, Clara became the first woman in Williamsburg to vote.

For her efforts, Clara earned numerous accolades. In 2007, she was honored by the Virginia State Library and Archives as an African American Trailblazer. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation recognized her achievements in 2011. The Virginia State University Alumni Association gave her a Meritorious Service Award and named her their Alumni of the Year. In 1989, a newly-built elementary school in Williamsburg was named in her honor.

Clara Baker Byrd passed away on October 20, 1979, at the age of 93. She is interred in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Williamsburg.

Teacher Dolores Huerta dedicated her life to helping migrant farmworkers

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Dolores Huerta

Teacher Dolores Huerta dedicated her life to helping migrant farm workers.

Like many people who have heard of farm labor leader and civil rights advocate Cesar Chavez, I have also heard of his right-hand woman, Dolores Huerta, elected vice president of the United Farm Workers Union. But did you know she was also a teacher?

Raised in Stockton, California, Dolores graduated in 1955 with an AA and her teaching credentials from the College of the Pacific. After her college graduation, she accepted a teaching position in a rural Stockton elementary school. She had been teaching for only a short time when she realized she wanted to devote her vast energy to migrant farm workers and their families. “I couldn’t stand seeing farm worker children come to class hungry and in need of shoes,” she once explained. “I thought I could do more by organizing their parents than by trying to teach their hungry children.”

After just one year, Dolores resigned from her teaching position, determined to launch a campaign that would fight the numerous economic injustices faced by migrant agricultural workers. Joining forces with the legendary labor leader Cesar Chavez, the intrepid educator helped organize a large-scale strike against the commercial grape growers of the San Joaquin Valley, an effort which raised national awareness of the abysmal treatment of America’s agricultural workers. She also negotiated contracts which led to their improved working conditions. The rest, as they say, is history.

Although there are several fairly good juvenile biographies of this extraordinary woman, there is no definitive adult biography about her. The closest thing to it is A Dolores Huerta Reader edited by Mario T. Garcia. This book includes an informative biographical introduction by the editor, articles and book excerpts written about her, her own writings and transcripts of her speeches, and a recent interview with Mario Garcia. You can find A Dolores Huerta Reader on amazon. I have also included a chapter about this remarkable teacher in my second book, entitled Chalkboard Heroes.

Teacher Prudence Crandall: The Chalkboard Hero who taught African American students

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Prudence Crandall

Teacher Prudence Crandall: The Chalkboard Hero who taught African American students.

There are many examples of heroic teachers who have dedicated their considerable energy to improving the American social fabric. One such teacher is Prudence Crandall, a 19th-century educator who fought her entire Connecticut community for the right to enroll African American students in her school.

In 1831 well-known and highly-respected schoolteacher Prudence Crandall opened a boarding school for young ladies in Canterbury, Connecticut. By the end of the first year, she had earned the praise of parents, community members, and students throughout New England.

The accolades for Prudence suddenly ended, though, the day an African American student named Sarah Harris asked to be admitted to Prudence’s school. Sarah said she wanted to learn how to be a teacher so she could open her own school for black students. Prudence knew admitting an African American student would generate some resistance from her neighbors, but after some soul-searching she decided her conscience would not allow her to refuse the request.

Prudence had severely under-estimated the resistance she would face from her community. Figuring the complaint was that she was operating an integrated school, the teacher closed her academy for white girls and re-opened as an academy for “misses of color.” That just made the situation worse, causing objections that rippled all the way up to the US Supreme Court and resulting in Prudence’s brief incarceration in the local jail.

Read the gripping account of this valiant teacher in the book, The Forbidden Schoolhouse: The True and Dramatic Story of Prudence Crandall and Her Students by Suzanne Jurmain, available on amazon. I have also included a chapter about this heroic teacher in my second book, Chalkboard Heroes.

Martha Forrester: Classroom teacher and early Civil Rights activist

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Martha ForresterTeachers very often devote considerable talent and energy towards advancing social causes. One teacher in American history who did this is Martha Forrester, a classroom teacher and early Civil Rights activist.

The Civil War was in full swing in 1863 when Martha Forrester was born in Richmond, Virginia. When she grew up, she worked for several years as a public school teacher in Richmond.

Martha married Robert Forrester as a young woman, and after her husband passed away, she moved to Farmville, Virginia, to live with her daughter. There Martha was one of five founding members of retired educators who established the Council of Colored Women in 1920. She served as the president of that organization for over 30 years, endeavoring to better educational opportunities for African American students in Prince Edward County. “She felt the need that she wanted to improve the lives, you know, of African American children here in the form of education,” commented Beatrice White, a descendant of Martha Forrester. Martha was able to accomplish many improvements for the students she cared so much about, including  extending the school year and increasing access to higher-level classes. The Council also conducted tutoring, offered counseling, and organized blood mobiles to serve their community.

The former classroom teacher was also instrumental in founding the county’s first high school for African American students. Under her leadership, the Council raised $300,000 to buy a building and establish Robert Russa Moton High School, named in honor of a local educator. When the doors of the school opened in 1939, 450 students showed up for classes, although the facility was built for only 150. The school has since been turned into a museum.

This amazing chalkboard champion passed away in 1951. Her Farmville home was designated a historic site by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources in March, 2017. Read more about Martha Forrester in this article published by the Farmville Herald.

Martha Forrester

Classroom teacher and Civil Rights activist Martha Forrester was instrumental in founding Virginia’s Robert Russa Moton High School for African American students.

Chalkboard Champion Mary Hatwood Futrell: Teacher and former president of the NEA

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Mary Hatwood Futrell

Chalkboard champion Mary Hatwood Futrell, teacher and former president of the NEA

One of the most amazing chalkboard champions I have ever researched is Mary Hatwood Futrell, a high school business teacher from Virginia who was eventually elected president of the National Education Association (NEA).

Mary was born in Altavista, Campbell County, Virginia, on May 24, 1940. Young Mary was raised by a single mother, who worked as a housekeeper and factory worker. When she became an adult, Mary established a relationship with her biological father, a construction worker.

As a teenager, Mary attended Dunbar High School in Lynchburg, Virginia. There she participated in cheerleading, student government, Future Business Leaders of America, and the National Honor Society. After her high school graduation in 1958, Mary enrolled in Virginia State University, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Education In 1962.

Mary accepted her first position as a teacher at Parker Gray High School, a segregated school located in Alexandria, Virginia. She taught there from 1962 to 1964. In 1965, the young teacher moved to George Washington High School, where she was instrumental in integrating the teaching staff. She taught business courses at George Washington until 1980. While there, Mary pursued her Master’s degree in Secondary Education from George Washington University. She completed the degree requirements in 1968.

In addition to her work in the classroom, Mary was active in the teachers’ union. She worked her way up the ranks, and was eventually elected president of the National Education Association (NEA) in 1983. Only the fourth person of color to be elected to that office, she served there until 1989. During her three terms as NEA president, Mary led the organization to achieve gains in civil and human rights, especially women’s rights. Because of her tireless efforts, the NEA created the Mary Futrell Award to recognize individuals who have made a significant impact on education and on the achievement of equal opportunities for women and girls.

In 1992, this amazing educator joined the faculty of George Washington University. In 1995, she was promoted to Dean of the Graduate School of Education and Human Development. She also served as the director of the George Washington Institute for Curriculum Standards and Technology. She did all this while earning her doctorate in Education Policy Studies. Mary has also served in a number of other important organizations. She was the president of the World Confederation of Organizations of the Teaching Profession; The Virginia Education Association; Education International; and ERAmerica.

To guide fellow teachers in their search for best practices, the former classroom teacher has published numerous scholarly articles about the pedagogy of teaching. “When the uncapped potential of a student meets the liberating art of a teacher,” Mary once wrote, “a miracle unfolds.”

For her work in education policy and reform, Mary has been awarded numerous honors and awards, including more than 20 honorary degrees. To learn more about this amazing chalkboard champion, see her biography at History Makers.