To celebrate diversity and recognize a vital part of our country’s history, the Holy Cross social studies department is honoring Black History Month in February with a series of programs and projects school wide.
Each morning during opening prayer, our students are learning about some of our black Saints, and our HCTV announcements include highlights of historically significant African Americans, with a daily question to reflect upon.
On Wednesday February 5 the social studies department hosted an evening showing of the movie Selma. More than 100 students and guests participated in the special screening and were treated to guest speaker Alfred Richard ’79. Richard is reporter and movie critic for WWL-TV and WYES-TV. He shared not only his own journey at Holy Cross, but also the importance of movies like Selma and learning about the sacrifices and struggles of the Civil Rights Movement.
In the library, students and family members can visit a special poster exhibit from the Smithsonian Institute, “City of Hope, Resurrection City and the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign.” The exhibit looks at the last movement organized by Martin Luther King, Jr. and the importance of advocacy and helping those in need. Classes are encouraged to walk through the gallery and discuss focus questions on the exhibit. It is open to any visitors.
Students in our primary grades are also participating in Black History Month under the organization of Ms. Cleona Torres and Ms. Maranda Alvarez. Students are creating a hallway gallery walkthrough of important African American figures.
On February 13, students watched Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech during formation period and will discuss what that dream means and how it impacts their lives. In the classroom students will be doing a variety small projects centered around Black History Month. Click the link below to see the video that was presented to students, along with reflections from several of our faculty members.
Watch video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFT3y8JwtoY&feature=youtu.be
Photo Gallery:
https://photos.holycrosstigers.com/Black-History-Month-2020/