Course Syllabus-Examining Racial Equity: Durham Public Schools Over the Past 50 years
Meeting Day/Time: Tuesdays from 1:30 pm till 2:45 pm
Dates of Course: 8 sessions from 2/16/21- 4/6/21
Co-Facilitators: Susan Dennison [email protected] (336) 509-1767
Marion Jervay [email protected] (919) 699-7779
Summary of Course: This course will provide participants an opportunity to examine where Durham Public Schools (DPS) were in terms of racial equity in 1971 and now in 2021. A course prerequisite is to have read The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South. Why? In order to have gained a basic understanding of Durham’s racial history from its inception in 1869, in the 1970s and in the two decades immediately following the charrette. Speakers, including the book’s author, the consultant who organized the charrette and local public servants and educators, will help us to gain an understanding of the level of racial equity that has been achieved within DPS over the past fifty years. Students will also learn how they can support and assist DPS’s efforts to foster greater racial equity today and in the future.
Instructional Methods: Presentations by wide array of speakers, facilitated discussions and time for Q and A, Listening to audio recordings, Viewing videos.
Required Reading for Course: The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South by Osha Gray Davidson. Available for purchase and curb side pickup at the Regulator Bookstore, 720 Ninth Street, Durham, NC.
Learning Goals of Course
Session Plans
2/16/21 - Session One: Overview of Course & a Look at Race Relations in Durham
Review of how Durham’s history has impacted racial equity in DPS. Mayor Bill Bell (2001-2017) will share his memories of participating in the merger of the city and county school systems (as a County Commissioner) and his observations on race relations in Durham that he garnered in public service and as a private citizen.
2/23/21 - Session Two: DPS in 1971 & Impact of the Charrette
A snapshot of DPS in the 1970s will precede a discussion of and how the charrette impacted the school system in the 1970s and 1980s. Bill Riddick, who conducted the 1971 Charrette, will share his recollections about this experience. His insights with regard to interactions between the co-chairs Ann Atwater and C. P. Ellis should be riveting.
3/2/21 - Session Three: The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South
Osha Gray Davidson (author of The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South) will share his major discoveries while researching and writing the book and what he has continued to learn about Durham, and in particular the public schools, since the book’s publication in 1996.
3/9/21 - Session Four: Joycelyn McKissick & Floyd McKissick, Sr.: A Brother and Son’s Recollections
The McKissick family was in the forefront of the fight to integrate Durham’s public schools. Joycelyn McKissick (1943 -2005) was the first African American to attend and graduate from Durham High School. Floyd McKissick, Sr. (1922 –1991) was one of the first African Americans to graduate from UNC’s Law School. Floyd McKissick, Jr., Duke Law grad, former NC Senator and NC Utilities Board Commissioner, will share his memories of this turbulent time through the experiences of his sister and father.
3/16/21 - Session Five: View from within DPS Classrooms
A panel of retired DPS educators will share their experiences within a system that was being transformed over the past 50 years. Eddie Davis, Alan Teasley and Carolyn Pugh are our distinguished panelists.
3/23/21 - Session Six: DPS Today
Daniel Kelvin Bullock, Ph.D. Director of DPS Office of Equity Affairs, will present on the current state of racial equity in Durham’s Public Schools.
3/30/21 - Session Seven: Impact of Charter Schools upon DPS
Helen “Sunny” Ladd, Ph.D., a retired Duke Professor who has done extensive research on charter schools, will present the timeline for charter schools in North Carolina, provide current racial breakdown data, and explain how these charter schools have impacted racial equity within DPS today.
4/6/21 - Session Eight: Ways to Engage with DPS
How can we raise our voices to assist in the creation of a more equitable public school system in Durham? Speakers from both DPS and several non-profits will share ways that you can help to increase racial equity within DPS.
Recommended Additional Readings
How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for White People to talk about Race
by Robin DiAngelo
Waking up White: Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving
Dates of Course: 8 sessions from 2/16/21- 4/6/21
Co-Facilitators: Susan Dennison [email protected] (336) 509-1767
Marion Jervay [email protected] (919) 699-7779
Summary of Course: This course will provide participants an opportunity to examine where Durham Public Schools (DPS) were in terms of racial equity in 1971 and now in 2021. A course prerequisite is to have read The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South. Why? In order to have gained a basic understanding of Durham’s racial history from its inception in 1869, in the 1970s and in the two decades immediately following the charrette. Speakers, including the book’s author, the consultant who organized the charrette and local public servants and educators, will help us to gain an understanding of the level of racial equity that has been achieved within DPS over the past fifty years. Students will also learn how they can support and assist DPS’s efforts to foster greater racial equity today and in the future.
Instructional Methods: Presentations by wide array of speakers, facilitated discussions and time for Q and A, Listening to audio recordings, Viewing videos.
Required Reading for Course: The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South by Osha Gray Davidson. Available for purchase and curb side pickup at the Regulator Bookstore, 720 Ninth Street, Durham, NC.
Learning Goals of Course
- To increase and expand students’ knowledge of race relations in Durham.
- To examine the progress of racial equity within DPS since 1970s.
- To increase students’ knowledge of ways they can assist, support, and volunteer to further racial equity within DPS.
Session Plans
2/16/21 - Session One: Overview of Course & a Look at Race Relations in Durham
Review of how Durham’s history has impacted racial equity in DPS. Mayor Bill Bell (2001-2017) will share his memories of participating in the merger of the city and county school systems (as a County Commissioner) and his observations on race relations in Durham that he garnered in public service and as a private citizen.
2/23/21 - Session Two: DPS in 1971 & Impact of the Charrette
A snapshot of DPS in the 1970s will precede a discussion of and how the charrette impacted the school system in the 1970s and 1980s. Bill Riddick, who conducted the 1971 Charrette, will share his recollections about this experience. His insights with regard to interactions between the co-chairs Ann Atwater and C. P. Ellis should be riveting.
3/2/21 - Session Three: The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South
Osha Gray Davidson (author of The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South) will share his major discoveries while researching and writing the book and what he has continued to learn about Durham, and in particular the public schools, since the book’s publication in 1996.
3/9/21 - Session Four: Joycelyn McKissick & Floyd McKissick, Sr.: A Brother and Son’s Recollections
The McKissick family was in the forefront of the fight to integrate Durham’s public schools. Joycelyn McKissick (1943 -2005) was the first African American to attend and graduate from Durham High School. Floyd McKissick, Sr. (1922 –1991) was one of the first African Americans to graduate from UNC’s Law School. Floyd McKissick, Jr., Duke Law grad, former NC Senator and NC Utilities Board Commissioner, will share his memories of this turbulent time through the experiences of his sister and father.
3/16/21 - Session Five: View from within DPS Classrooms
A panel of retired DPS educators will share their experiences within a system that was being transformed over the past 50 years. Eddie Davis, Alan Teasley and Carolyn Pugh are our distinguished panelists.
3/23/21 - Session Six: DPS Today
Daniel Kelvin Bullock, Ph.D. Director of DPS Office of Equity Affairs, will present on the current state of racial equity in Durham’s Public Schools.
3/30/21 - Session Seven: Impact of Charter Schools upon DPS
Helen “Sunny” Ladd, Ph.D., a retired Duke Professor who has done extensive research on charter schools, will present the timeline for charter schools in North Carolina, provide current racial breakdown data, and explain how these charter schools have impacted racial equity within DPS today.
4/6/21 - Session Eight: Ways to Engage with DPS
How can we raise our voices to assist in the creation of a more equitable public school system in Durham? Speakers from both DPS and several non-profits will share ways that you can help to increase racial equity within DPS.
Recommended Additional Readings
How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for White People to talk about Race
by Robin DiAngelo
Waking up White: Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving