Rosena H. Gaines oral history interview, 2004 March 25
Identifier
http://dp.la/api/items/3f80ab0fabd92d20ca3ba4e6b8430e6a
Title
Rosena H. Gaines oral history interview, 2004 March 25
Creator
Gaines, Rosena, 1918-2013 (interviewee)
Date
3/25/2004
Description
Rosena H. Gaines describes her early life in Charlotte's Brooklyn neighborhood, and her experiences as both a student and a teacher at Second Ward High School. As a student at Second Ward, Mrs. Gaines recalls an active and involved student body participating in student organizations, sporting events, and after-school activities. She then recounts the close-knit relationships she formed with students and their parents after returning to Second Ward High School as a teacher. Mrs. Gaines also recalls her experiences mentoring and motivating troubled youth. Specifically, she discusses her use of unconventional methods to reform unruly student behaviors as well as her efforts to encourage her students to be ambitious and to set high academic goals. She also describes the sense of love and community spirit throughout Brooklyn and how that was lost when the neighborhood was demolished during the 1960s as a part of Charlotte's urban renewal program. In particular, she discusses the Brooklyn community's ambivalent reaction to urban renewal. Mrs. Gaines recounts how some community members did not want to block economic progress, while many other people opposed urban renewal but felt that their opinions had no effect on the outcome.
Subject
1920-2010
African Americans--Education
African American educators
Segregation in education
Group identity
High school students--Societies and clubs
Urban renewal--Social aspects
Gaines, Rosena, 1918-2013
Second Ward High School (Charlotte, N.C.)
Source
North Carolina Digital Heritage Center
Language
English
Type
sound
Collection
Citation
Gaines, Rosena, 1918-2013 (interviewee), “Rosena H. Gaines oral history interview, 2004 March 25,” Center for Knit and Crochet Digital Repository, accessed May 4, 2024, http://digital.centerforknitandcrochet.org/items/show/7601.
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