At the IU School of Education in Indianapolis, we love to highlight what our students, faculty and staff are doing over the course of the school year. In this interview, we are congratulating and highlighting Darius Lewis. Darius Lewis is a Junior and is currently in our Teacher Education Program and his submission to the NCUR (National Conference on Undergraduate Research) has been accepted. The submission, "Carter G Woodson, A Visionary Creating a Legacy for Black Children: A Duo Ethnographic Conversation," has been accepted for presentation as "Accepted Student Poster Presentation" for the NCUR Conference in California in April.
We want to congratulate Darius and his accomplishments! Below is an interview we had with Darius about his accomplishment and a brief overview of his presentation.
Q: Can you tell me your name and current student status?
A: My name is Darius Lewis and I am a Junior.
Q: Your submission to the NCUR was titled, "Carter G Woodson, A Visionary Creating a Legacy for Black Children: A Duo Ethnographic Conversation," what made you want to highlight this person and their work?
A: What made me want to highlight this person was that a lot of people don't know about Carter G Woodson. Before this research, I was one of those people. I wanted to learn more about Black history. I wanted to learn more about the oppression that Black people had to deal with specifically in education and how Negro History Week soon became Black History Month. Carter G Woodson was someone I had never heard about until my mentor Dr. Cleveland Hayes told me to read up on him. More importantly, as an up-and-coming Black male educator, Carter G Woodson highlights the forefront and trials that Black teachers and students had to overcome to get where we are today. Everything comes to life while reading about him and his journey.
Q: Can you give a brief overview of the presentation?
A: In many ways, the lives, insights, and applied practices of Black men educators can be understood as living practice texts (i.e., curriculum) which students, colleagues, and others have (for centuries) drawn on and learned from. The contributions of Black men educators are far-ranging and span all facets of the education landscape including pedagogy, philosophy, curriculum studies, research, history, and social foundations. Relatedly, their protracted work as teachers, administrators, policymakers, advocates, and activists stretches back to the days of the African Free School (circa 1787). Working in these (and various other) roles, Black mens’ individual and collective impact in the field is distinctive and defining evidence of their overall commitment to Black students, families, and communities. We intentionally constructed this article to follow in the spirit and tradition of Black intellectual theorizing as a collective, recursive discourse between thinkers of African descent. The purpose of this research project is to highlight some of the major contributions beyond Black History Month of Carter G. Woods.
Q: When you submitted this presentation, did you feel that it would be accepted at NCUR?
A: When I submitted this presentation, I definitely had my doubts. I trusted God as I was going through this process and prayed about it. I was patiently waiting for January 11th to arrive.
Q: Describe how you felt when you received the email that you had been accepted to present this at NCUR.
A: When I received the email that I was accepted, I was ecstatic! I was really happy that I was given that chance to present in Long Beach, California. The email arrived at 5:12 pm and I immediately clicked on it! The first word was congratulations!
One thing I've always told myself was to work harder than I did the day before. Only then is when I will see growth happen. To go out, to explore, to gain knowledge, it's all a part of the college experience. One day at a time and surely greatness will blossom.
We look forward to Darius Lewis' presentation. He will be presenting at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) 2024 on April 8-10, 2024 in Long Beach, California!
Congratulations again Darius, keep up the good work!