Jump at the Sun
“Mama exhorted her children at every opportunity to jump at the sun.”
– Zora Neale Hurston
Community conversations at the More Than A Month event and within the ongoing campaign for a mandatory African American History course ignited a community-wide call to examine the history and social studies curriculums currently being taught to WS/FCS students. While the program for K-12 curriculum infusion has been ongoing for 28 years, recent community push for equity and representation in curriculum led to WS/FCS implementing “K-12 Cultural Infusion Project” in 2019.
When WS/FCS parents and educators began conversations around curriculum infusion years ago, they quickly agreed that implicit bias and stigmatization are embedded in our current Euro-centric social studies curriculum and it falls short of building a critical background and knowledge base for students. Evidence shows that culturally competent education and curriculums may be the hidden key to educational excellence as well as developing social-emotional skills for students of all ages; a 2016 Stanford University study confirmed that ethnic studies classes in schools raised attendance, grades and high school credits.
The current Euro-centric social studies curriculum falls short of building a critical background and knowledge base for students.
If we’re ever going to achieve racial equity we must first unpack the stories of how we arrived here. At the core, Jump at the Sun is a celebration and the ongoing beautiful struggle to realize democracy. We believe every child will benefit from an educational system rooted in truth; one willing to teach every aspect of our national history.
We know that structural racism endures as a result of a veiled understanding of who we are. Racist policies, practices, attitudes, biases and messages continues to be a barrier from us achieving our best.
Now is the time to provide something different!
We invite you to join us as we authentically work to make equity in education a strategic imperative when it comes to educating the whole child in Winston-Salem / Forsyth County and empower them to Jump At The Sun.
