Teaching “The Spirit of Virginia”: History Curricula and the Long Civil Rights Movement, 1919-1965

Meredith Barber

Civil rights historiography has highlighted Black teachers' efforts for salary equalization and better schools, but recent controversies over Black history in public school classrooms beg the question: how did history curricula fit into the struggle for civil rights? "Teaching the 'Spirit of Virginia': History Curricula and the Long Civil Rights Movement, 1919-1965," uses archival sources from Black teachers, education bureaucrats, and curriculum programs to argue that history classrooms were a key site of action – and racist reaction – during the long civil rights movement in Virginia (1919-1965). The project expands on current efforts to situate Black pedagogy as activism by intertwining the state's efforts to change history curricula with the ways Black teachers interpreted and challenged the curricula. Each chapter is based on a moment of curricular activism and is guided by the individual experiences of Black teachers: 1925, when Black educators drew from the early Black history movement to call for textbook and curriculum reform as the state passed its strictest Jim Crow laws; 1934, when the failures of the Curriculum Revision Program radicalized Black teachers and precipitated the school equalization movement in Virginia; 1942, when the Second World War and resulting popularity of intercultural education opened space for Black educators to alter public school curricula; and 1957, when the Board of Education mandated the first state-authored history textbook in the wake of Brown v. Board. "Teaching the 'Spirit of Virginia'" reveals the dynamic relationship between Black teachers and the state and the power structures behind curriculum development.

About Meredith Barber

Meredith Barber is a Ph.D. candidate in History at Boston University. Meredith's research is situated at the intersection of the history of education, African American intellectual history, and historical memory. She is particularly interested in the ways teachers engaged with the state during the Jim Crow era in upper South states like Virginia. Prior to her doctoral studies, Meredith worked at a number of public history sites including Monticello, Old Town Alexandria, William & Mary, and the Boston Athenaeum. Her experience working with educators in history teaching workshops at these sites inspired her to research the ways that history teachers have navigated state curriculum control and challenged dominant history narratives in the past. Through her research, she hopes to shed light on the ways teachers have grappled with the politics of teaching history. She has presented her work in a variety of spaces including the American Historical Association and History of Education conferences. Meredith received her B.A. in History and Public Policy from William & Mary. Outside of her research, Meredith is a middle-distance track runner and enjoys cooking and playing with her cats.