#blackeducator

John Chavis (1763 -June 15, 1838 ) was a prominent and remarkable figure in early American history, born into a free Black family around 1763. His life's work as a preacher and educator makes him a significant historical figure, especially considering the time period in which he lived.

Chavis was born in either Virginia or North Carolina to free parents. While little is known for certain about his childhood, it is believed he may have been an indentured servant for a period, which might have given him access to education through his employer's library.

Chavis served as a soldier in the American Revolutionary War, enlisting in the Fifth Virginia Regiment. His service as a free Black man fighting for the American cause is a powerful part of his legacy.

He is widely considered the first African American to attend college in the United States. He studied at what is now Princeton University as a private student of the college's president, John Witherspoon, and later attended Washington Academy (now Washington and Lee University).

Chavis was ordained as a Presbyterian minister and was highly respected as a preacher. He was also a renowned educator who opened a private school in Raleigh, North Carolina. His school was unusual and groundbreaking for the time because he taught both Black and white students, often in separate sessions. His white students came from some of the most prominent families in the state.

After the Nat Turner Rebellion in 1831, North Carolina passed laws that severely restricted the rights of free Black people, including making it illegal for them to preach or teach. This forced Chavis to close his school and retire from his public ministry. Despite these setbacks, his legacy endures. He is celebrated as a testament to intellectual achievement and perseverance in the face of systemic racism, and his name is honored in North Carolina through landmarks like the John Chavis Memorial Park in Raleigh.

Black History Month is a time to celebrate the contributions of Black people in the nation’s history. The founder of Black History Month was Carter G. Woodson (1875–1950), known as the father of Black history and the second Black person to receive Ph.D. from Harvard University. While growing up on his family’s farm in Virginia, Woodson’s enslaved uncles taught him in a one-room schoolhouse. Before high school, he worked in coal mines alongside formerly enslaved men and Civil War veterans who were illiterate. Woodson came to understand the importance of education and the knowledge gained from Black people’s lived experiences, which should be both preserved and celebrated.

As a scholar and educator, Woodson wrote many influential books including “The Mis-Education of the Negro” published in 1933 and “African Heroes and Heroines” published in 1944. His critique of the American school system for the various forms of violence inflicted upon Black people and inequality to access is still very relevant. He also wrote on the rich history of Africa and African American life to educate teachers and the public about the myriad contributions of Black people.

Before Woodson created Negro History Week in 1926, many Black teachers were already celebrating the birthdays of various figures such as Frederick Douglass, who was born in February. Woodson offered an institutional structure with materials that could be disseminated across Black schools. The week was eventually expanded to a month-long celebration starting in 1976.

You can read more about Carter G. Woodson in the Harvard Gazette, in a recent interview with Jarvis Givens, assistant professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Suzanne Young Murray Assistant Professor at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

The image is the cover of “African Heroes and Heroines”, a part of FAL’s Digital Images and Slides Collection (DISC), a collection of images digitized from secondary sources for use in teaching and learning. FAL does not own the original artworks represented in this collection, but you can find more information at HOLLIS Images.

If even though we have new President elect !! We still need to know that Black Lives Still Matter and will always matter !!

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