Mountain View Elementary hosted several alumni Monday from Langston High School, the former high school for African American students in Johnson City, to honor the school’s legacy and share how civil rights history is being taught in schools.
Mountain View Elementary hosted several alumni Monday from Langston High School, the former high school for African American students in Johnson City, to honor the school’s legacy and share how civil rights history is being taught in schools.
Mountain View Elementary hosted several alumni Monday from Langston High School, the former high school for African American students in Johnson City, to honor the school’s legacy and share how civil rights history is being taught in schools.
The event featured a presentation from Mountain View’s library specialist, Anna Armstrong, during which she shared how she incorporated Langston High School’s history into her discussions with fifth grade students about the civil rights movement and push for integration. She shared with Langston alumni the history that she passed on to students during their lessons, saying that she feels it is important to be able to tie local history into these discussions about major historical movements.
In her lessons, Armstrong showed students clips from videos where she spoke with Langston alumni about their experiences and memories of being in high school during the integration movement. Despite the turmoil that marked much of that time in history, including Langston in the lessons helped to show students the joy, pride, and love that the alumni have for their alma mater.
“I feel so fortunate to be in contact with living history and to hear the alumni’s stories and to see other people appreciate and now understand more of Langston’s history,” she said. “That’s the goal — I don’t want the Langston legacy to be forgotten.”
The event offered alumni the opportunity to gather together, share memories, and see that their experiences and Langston’s history continues to be passed on. Guests also had the opportunity to view artwork that Mountain View students created for Black History Month and their Langston Project which features the schools mascot — the Golden Tiger.
“I am just overwhelmed that it’s continuing — that our legacy is continuing,” said one attendee. “There were some sad moments that I remember personally ... but I am just overwhelmed with the information that (Ms. Armstrong) is teaching the children and by the fact that their interest is as great as it is.”
The lessons that Armstrong developed in partnership with the Langston Centre and alumni have been shared with other library specialists across the district for them to incorporate into their discussion of the Civil Rights Era. The lessons have also helped to connect students to the modern day Langston Centre so that they can see and be involved in the community services that the center provides while honoring and carrying on the Langston Legacy.
To view Armstrong’s interviews with alumni and learn more about local history from those who lived it, visit https://www.youtube.com/@5948138/featured.
