BERWICK ARE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

BHS Celebrates Black History Month Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month.

Mathematics Department Mr. Thatcher spent time with his classes discussing influential Mathematicians. Utiliz- Social Studies Department ing mashupmath.com, students were exposed As part of the curriculum in AP Government and to 11 Famous African American Civics and also in the Civics Honors classes, Mr. Mathematicians. The famous mathematicians Gadam’s students learned about Civil Liberties and included, Benjamin Banneker, Fern Hunt, Civil Rights. This included the Civil Rights Act of Mark Dean, Elbert Frank Cox, Katherine 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Brown v. Johnson, Valerie Thomas, Lonnie Johnson, Board of Education, and Dr. King’s Letter from John Urschel, Euphemia Lofton Haynes, Birmingham Jail. Annie Easley, and Mae Carol Jemison. More information on each can be found at, https://www.mashupmath.com/blog/famous- african-american-mathematicians

Amanda Gorman, American Poet and activist, delivered a poem dur- ing President Joe Biden’s inaugura- tion. The poem was used to discuss Black History Month in the English Department of BHS. AP LITERATURE AND COMPOSITION

In honor of Black History Month the AP Literature and Composi- tion course, taught by Mr. Phillips, studies the play “Fences” by August Wilson. We also read, interpret, and discuss Alice Walker’s novel The Color Purple. Lastly, we analyze Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech. “Fences” Overview and Background August Wilson chronicled the African-American experience in the 20th century in a series of plays that will stand as a landmark in the history of black culture, of American literature, and of Broadway Theater. “From the beginning, I decided not to write about historical events or the pathologies of the black community. The details of our struggle to survive and prosper, in what has been a difficult and sometimes bitter relationship with a system of laws and practices that deny us access to the tools necessary for productive and industrious life, are available to any serious student of history or sociology.” - August Wilson - Inspired by the Black Power movement then gaining momentum, Mr. Wilson and a group of fellow poets founded a theater workshop and an art gallery, and in 1968 Mr. Wilson and his friend Rob Penny founded the Black Horizons on the Hill Theater. Mr. Wilson remained devoted to the alternative culture of black Americans and mourned its gradual decline as the black middle class grew and adopted the values of its white counterpart. Mr. Wilson did not write plays with specific political agendas, but he did believe art could subtly effect social change. And while his essential aim was to evoke and ennoble the collective African-American experience, he also believed his work could help rewrite some of those rules. "I think my plays offer (white Americans) a different way to look at black Americans," he told The Paris Review. "For instance, in 'Fences' they see a garbage man, a person they don't really look at, although they see a garbage man every day. By looking at Troy's life, white people find out that the content of this black garbage man’s life is affected by the same things - love, honor, beauty, betrayal, duty. Recognizing that these things are as much part of his life as theirs can affect how they think about and deal with black people in their lives."

The Color Purple Overview and Background When "The Color Purple" was released in 1982, Walker gained an even wider audience. Her Pulitzer Prize and the movie directed by Steven Spielberg brought both fame and controversy. She was widely criticized for negative portrayals of men in "The Color Purple," though many critics admitted that the film presented more simplistic negative pictures than the book's more nuanced portrayals. Walker's works are known for their portrayals of the Black woman's life. She depicts vividly the sexism, racism, and poverty that often make that life a struggle. But she also portrays, as part of that life, the strengths of family, community, self-worth, and spirituality. Many of her novels depict women in other periods of history than our own. Just as with nonfiction women's history writing, such portrayals give a sense of the differences and similarities of the women's condition today and in that other time.

AP BIO and INTEGRATED SCIENCE Henrietta Lacks was an African- American woman that passed away from cervical cancer in 1951. Her cervical cells were harvested for a biopsy by doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital and grown in culture ever since. Referred to as HeLa cells, her cells turned out to be the only immortal cell line to date and have led to over 17,000 patents, making them the most useful cell line in medical research. At the time it was not necessary for doctors to obtain permission to culture cells from an examination, which has created great controversy. Her family has still not received any compensation for the use of her cells in any of the research performed on or patents obtained from the research on the HeLa cell line. Her story was chronicled in a book titled The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, which was later made into a movie by Oprah Winfrey. She has been recognized posthumously by several medical schools, including Johns Hopkins University. Henrietta was also inducted into the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame as well as the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Later in the school year, Ms. Rothery’s 9th graders will also view the movie Hidden Fig- ures. This 2016 American biographical drama film highlights African American female mathematicians who worked at NASA during the Space Race.

AP Chemistry Norbert Rillieux invented the multiple effect evapora- tor (modern day basis for any industrial evaporation and why refined sugar can is readily available and cheap). This historical fact is discussed with students and ties into Mrs. Readler’s Thermodynamics Unit.