Unlearning the hush: Oral histories of Black female educators in Mississippi 1954-1971

The purpose of this study is to examine the ways in which desegregation efforts and Brown v. Board impacted the lives of Black, female educators from 1954-1971 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. This study explores the lives and stories of these women, examines the historical implications of public-school desegregation in Hattiesburg, and draws connections between history and current day concerns in K-12 schools. This study is significant because it extends our understanding of the oral histories of the Black women, it helps fill in the gaps of the historical record, and it centers the voices and histories of Black women who forged the path for education. My methodology for this study is an oral history, qualitative inductive study, using the oral histories of participants as primary source. This study centers the voices of the participants and serves as a counter-story to the dominant narrative. Using counter-storytelling, examines how these women’s teaching experiences and oral histories push back on traditional narratives and constructs about race. The site for my study is Hattiesburg, Mississippi (Forrest County) and my participants are Black women who taught pre/post integration in Hattiesburg. My data collection occurred through Zoom and/or telephone interviews to collect and record the oral histories of my participants. Triangulation occurred using not only the oral histories or the Black female educators that I interviewed, but also the oral histories of students who attended these schools, a Black male educator, and a historian. This dissertation examines the historical implications of these events through the oral histories of the Black women who taught in these very classrooms. By centering their stories and experiences, we can develop a more accurate historic record that represents their voices and guides us in how to best remedy current day concerns in education. This oral evidence will allow us to add to the scant research currently available, build upon the existing research, and ensure that the contributions and advancements that occurred in large part due to the efforts of these women, is recorded for future generations.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2022

Author dc:creator

• Bunch, Marlee Shanelle

Contributors dc:contributor

• Span, Christopher M
• Lee, Sharon
• Hale, Jon
• Pak, Yoon K.

• Black Education
• History

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2022 Marlee Bunch

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/117648

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F117648