Ladue Students Recognizing Black History Month

 Black History Month had its origins in 1915 when Dr. Carter G. Woodson and Rev. Jesse E. Moorland co-founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History to bring awareness of the many contributions African Americans made to the nation and the world.

He chose the month of February to honor the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln who issued the Emancipation Proclamation and Frederick Douglass, one of the nation’s leading abolitionists.

 During this month, schools and organizations across the country will honor Black Americans by featuring cultural and educational events to raise awareness of their contributions.

Reed Elementary School

Reed students have decorated their classroom doors with information about significant African Americans specific to their grade levels.

Reed Principal Chris Schreiner said, “Our teachers try to integrate what they’re teaching in the curriculum with multi-culturalism. We have done door decorations in the past where we celebrated significant African Americans and what they’re learning in the classroom, but we added JAMBO this year.”

In JAMBO, the Swahili word for "Hello," students designed a bingo board using names of African Americans who have impacted society. Each day for three weeks in February the a teacher calls the name of a significant African American over the intercom along with his/her contributions, and a short excerpt about the person. When a student wins, he or she comes to the office and gets a prize.

“They’re listening and getting exposed to a lot of different African Americans,” Schreiner said. “We want to focus on something all month and something that kids are engaged in instead of a one day festival, We thought a game where they could be engaged would be something meaningful.”

Karla Rigdon, fourth grade teacher, said students are able to talk about their cultures and the diversity in their lives.

“They’re able to come and give presentations, such as one first grader from the Philippines gave a talk on his culture. We are trying to make it authentic in our curriculum,” Rigden said.

A number of students responded to the question of what Black History Month meant to them.

Lila, fourth grade, said “It’s cool how there are so many people and we’re celebrating so many different cultures.”

Luke, also fourth grade, said, “We can learn about other people, what they’ve done to our world and how they’ve changed us, like what Martin Luther King did as far as being together and having a good relationship.”

Two kindergarten students, Julian and Chase, said they were learning about African Americans, especially Ozzie Smith.

Third grade student Jonathan said he has learned about the many things accomplished by black people and how proud he was to be a black person.  He added that Martin Luther King was his “favorite person” because of how he helped bring an end to segregation.

He would like to pattern himself after Magic Johnson, he said. “And also my Mom because she’s taught me a lot of things about black history.”

Reed Elementary School is located at 9060 Ladue Rd. For more information, call 314-991-1456 or visit www.ladue.k12.org.

Ladue High School

In conjunction with the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation and in celebration of Black History Month, the Ladue African American Student Alliance (LAASA) and the Blue Crew, the school spirit association, started the Dred Scott Penny Drive. Funds collected will support building a statue commemorating Dred and Harriet Scott’s historic fight for freedom, and would be outside the Old Courthouse in Downtown St. Louis.

LAASA and the Crew have challenged each academic lab to collect the most pennies (or any other form of currency).  The lab with the highest per person contribution will win a donut party. The drive will last until the end of the month.

Dred Scott’s name went down in history because of the Supreme Court ruling known as the Dred Scott Decision and the resulting reversal of the standing law regarding freed slaves.

The story of the eleven-year fight the Scotts waged to gain their freedom is less well known, and, without the efforts of many, could have been lost to history.  In their time, many ordinary citizens contributed financial and intellectual support to the Scotts’ fight for freedom.  The drive will help students to better understand the legacy of these freedom fighters.

The penny drive is a fund-raising tradition used to engage school children in civic events. In the mid 1930's, St. Louis public school children collected pennies to save the home of Dred's attorney, Roswell Field, from demolition.  Thus, the Penny Drive invites students to build civic pride while discovering their history and making an investment in their future. Also, the penny has historic meaning in that visitors to Dred Scott's gravesite at Calvary Cemetery often leave pennies on the headstone, which many believe are a tribute to Abraham Lincoln, an icon for the abolition of slavery.

To promote the event, senior Alyssa Buchanan produced a short commercial which can be seen at http://got.im/dhh.

LHWHS is located at 1201 S. Warson Rd. For more information, call 314-993-6447 or visit www.ladue.k12.org.

Ladue Middle School

The eighth grade teams will visit the Abraham Lincoln Museum in Springfield, Ill., this month to learn about the history of the United States, especially Lincoln's role in keeping the country together and freeing the slave population. This was the first in a chain of events leading to greater civil rights for everyone in America.

The middle school also displays a bulletin board in the front lobby with contributions of African Americans in history.  

In addition, students will be invited to a classroom during lunch where they will participate in teams to answer Black History trivia questions.

Ladue Middle School is located at 9701 Conway Rd. For more information, call 314-993-3900 or visit www.ladue.k12.org.

 St. Louis County Library

On Friday, February 25 from 7 to 9 p.m., the St. Louis County Library, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., will present “Filling the Gap: Oratorical Competition.” Young people between the ages of 12-18 are invited to practice their public speaking skills in front of a community audience while also competing for prizes. This year’s competition is inspired by the movie “Filling the Gap: Forgotten Chapter of American History” by filmmaker Tyrone Young. Registrations can be picked up at the headquarters and all branches.

For more information, call 314- 994-3300 or visit www.slcl.org.