How will the stories of our history at Daytona State College be told? What will we add to the building blocks of our college’s history and legacy? Our rich cultural roots in our communities and our state have always been a symbol of pride for Daytona State College.
In June 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 5, House Bill 233 and Senate Bill 1108, as a step towards strengthening long-term retention and application of civics education. To meet the challenge of setting a new standard on campus, faculty, staff, administration, and the students came together to celebrate Black History through art, education, food, music, and conversation.
Wednesday, February 23rd, Nunamann Hall Landing was abuzz with live music and laughter during Student Life’s Black History Day celebration. The festivities concluded with a discussion on Black History, facilitated by Dr. Nancy Duke alongside Megan Donawa, Juleen Daley, and Cassandra Briggs.
“I hope that these discussions will show students that their voices are important; that they can and should be proactive in making change in society,” said Dr. Duke, a professor of African American Studies. “I felt personally inspired by everyone who gave of themselves to further the discussion. It was meaningful to see people willing to talk about race and learning African American History.”
The program, entitled Raising Our Voices: A Discussion of Black History, was broadcast to all Daytona State College Campuses. Professor Rhonda Oehlrich and members of the Student Government Association helped to ensure audience members had an outlet to contribute to the conversation. Participants were able to submit questions via a Microsoft Form and those at Daytona were encouraged to join the facilitators in moving the conversation forward.
“The river of questions that overflowed the discussion,” Professor Megan Donawa recounted as her most meaningful takeaway from the discussion. “We had more questions than time, and that means the interest is there, and their voices are now louder than their fears.”
The conversation spanned from discussion of the role of black people in American history, to deeper, more difficult topics like the presence of racism and prejudices in our society, and more importantly, how to talk about it.
TRiO Talent Search Director, Cassandra Briggs felt, “Our stories are important, and people DO want to hear them. Speaking about race is not difficult, it’s the discomfort that is difficult. Having the chance to confront the discomfort actually felt amazing.”
“The discussion will never be considered easy; however, they will get better, more tolerable, and spread like wildfire,” Donawa adds. “These discussions will soon become a part of our culture here at the college. A culture that we all will be a part of, and I think that’s beautiful.”
Time constraints prevented every question and contribution from being addressed, but the conclusion of the event is not the conclusion of the conversation at Daytona State College. With a discussion on gender equality and women’s history scheduled for March 30th, the conversations we have and the history we are making at Daytona State College can only grow.
Adrianne Toles-Williams is the current Student Government Association President and former managing editor of InMotion.
Beautiful! Let’s keep the conversation going. The pictures are amazing because your smiling faces show that there can be joy in moving these conversations forward and making progress. Great article, Adrianne. Rock on!