Erwin Middle school seventh grade students have spent the year focusing on the “Inclusive” portion of our Eagle PRIDE (Prepared, Respectful, Inclusive, Disciplined, Engaged) expectations with monthly cultural celebrations.

The month of February’s celebration was very personal to Carlton Jackson, seventh grade math teacher, as he shared his family’s history through a deep dive into his family tree.

Amanda Fear, seventh grade ELA teacher, brought the idea of cultural celebrations to her team of teachers at the beginning of this year and was received with positive feedback from each of them.

Each month, a culture is chosen to celebrate, based on the 11 heritage months recognized by the federal government.

Fear states, “Students often lack knowledge of other cultures and backgrounds. This can lead to discrimination, stereo-typing, and generalizing other people who are different.”

With February being Black History Month, she thought it was extremely appropriate to ask Jackson if he would share some of his findings from his research of his ancestors. Jackson’s family has recently started researching their ancestry after discovering that his great, great grandmother, Millie Barber, was featured in “Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936 to 1938.”

There are currently 17 states represented in this project that features interviews conducted from people who lived as slaves. These participants range in ages from 80-100.

Sharing this is very important to Jackson because he believes, “Everyone has a story and this is my family’s story.”

Jackson shared his research with the seventh grade students at Erwin and was able to trace 3 generations of his family to a plantation in Winnsboro, SC. The stories that he shared with his students about his great, great grandmother helped them understand the truth about slavery and the connection it has to him.

He also wants his students to understand that, “We can overcome any trial, tribulation, or inequality that we face through understanding others.”

This opportunity to share this with his students also supports his educational mantra, “If all my students learn from me is math, then I have failed.”

Jackson’s biggest outcome from his research and sharing so far is, “I didn’t realize I could love someone I have never met and be so thankful to them for my entire family.”

 

Press release courtesy of Merenda Brady, Communications Ambassador at Erwin Middle School.