Alumna and Current Faculty Alisha Agard Offers New Black History Elective

Seattle Academy history teacher and alumna Alisha Agard ’11 taught a new course this year titled “Journey of the Diaspora: Black History in the U.S. and Abroad.” The elective, geared towards 12th graders, covers everything from the history of Black kingdoms and tribes to the impacts of colonialism and imperialism, South African apartheid, and how these topics connect to contemporary conversations around Black liberation in the U.S. today.

“A lot of Black history taught in schools starts with enslavement,” says Alisha, “but Black history doesn't start there.” Recent Class of 2023 graduate Maya Sheppard took the course in the winter and shares, “In Alisha's class, we learned about both Black struggle and Black excellence. For our final project, we created a presentation on an inspiring Black artist. I'd never learned that much about the successes of Black people, and I think it's just as important as learning about the hardships.”

The course’s foundation rests on the essential question, “What should students walk away from high school knowing about Black history?” Week one of the course starts with a community building circle — with students sharing thoughts and ideas about a topic — and establishing a list of class norms. “I start by asking students: ‘What do you know,’ so we are not reiterating but being intentional about topics we revisit,” explains Alisha, “and then we approach Black history from a different lens. It allows students to see how they sit within that Black history — and how they can apply that understanding to current times.” 

As is a common practice in SAAS classes, frequent check-ins are common: soliciting thumbs up, middle, or thumbs down indicating when the class needs to linger on a particular topic or theme in the conversation. In one unit, students focus on Black democracy. They read a chapter from the 1619 Project, and learn about the role of enslavement in establishing what we understand today as American democracy; not only in a theoretical, but also in a social aspect. It is not yet widely held knowledge that enslaved people built the capitol building that we have today, and that building serves as a physical representation of democracy. Enslaved people were also present throughout the act of writing the Constitution by accompanying the drafters.

“For me as a student, history was the hardest subject,” Alisha explains as she reflects on her experience as a student at SAAS. “Doing the memorization of dates and events was hard. The how and the why, and the connections made, really reached me. That is what I am bringing into this course.” Alisha continues, “Black history is everyone’s history because it is entwined in the fabric of our American history, and often we neglect to talk about it.”

Senior Brett Han could tell this class was unique from the moment she registered to take it winter trimester: 

Even from Alisha’s course description, I knew that this class would offer an examination of history that didn’t gloss over the sorer spots but unpacked tragedies and triumphs with an open attitude and critical eye. Alisha’s vibrant energy meshed with her genuine passion for the subject to make the class irresistibly engaging — so much so that I pursued research outside of class simply based on my desire to expand on topics shared in class. I read “The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois” and watched documentaries on the Tulsa Massacre.

Why teach this course now? 

In the last few years we’ve seen an increase in students advocating for the teaching of a wider range of topics in our English and History curriculum, specifically in our 12th grade elective offerings. We are a community who takes our student voices seriously. Our Guiding Principle of Inclusive Community and our Division, Equity, and Inclusion Statement call us to “nurture empathetic connections between people with different life experiences” and to “build a strong foundation for meaningful dialogue, informed advocacy, and effective action.” There is no clearer place to build connections and grow the skills required for informed action than within the classroom setting. 

“In a world where having conversations about race has become so taboo — and people are so afraid of saying the wrong thing — these students are willing to, at this young age, have these discussions that have the potential to be so challenging. The fact that students are opting in to take this elective, shows a lot of trust. I have appreciation and gratitude for the students and the SAAS community for trusting me in this way, and trusting the school to have these conversations.” Students explore the history of policing and civil rights, and develop a broader context for understanding racial identity and how race has evolved and been defined throughout America’s unique history. Current events are woven into the course, allowing students to put in direct dialogue the historical and contemporary contexts of the Black experience. 

Speaking to seniors in class, Alisha invites her students into both the shared and personal work of the course, “You are about to go out into the world. How can I prepare you for — and how can you decide — how you want to show up in it?”