A couple of years back current and former members of the Latino community in southwest Detroit formed VOCES: Southwest Detroit History Project team in an effort to more completely document the rich history of the Mexican and Latino communities in Detroit which dates back over 100 years. The current team is made up of a journalist, social workers, an educator, a businesswoman, film makers and a museum specialist. A couple members had been documenting the stories of elders, community activists, educators, and musicians going back almost 15 years through filmed and audio interviews as well as through community newspaper articles. Their success generated enthusiam and a desire from other community members to "pick up the mantle" in promoting community based historical research. In a recent community forum, well over 70 community residents from different generations expressed whole hearted support and encouragement for the team's efforts. A number of those present expressed a desire to help this effort.
The team panel will share with session participants their motivations, and successes and challenges in promoting a community based approach. The team understands the need to promote the importance of research and oral history collection among younger community members. It is part of our intergenertional organizing approach. We are in current discussions with some university instructors on how we can recruit undergraduate students in this process. Our hope is that this interest and possible involvement can "trickle down" to high school aged youth.
Latinos have rich and enduring ties to Southwest Detroit. Beckoned by industry, Mexicans and Puerto Ricans arrived in the city at the turn of the 20th century and planted roots—their destinies shaped by shifting policies, promises of work, and social mobility. What ensued was the... Read More →
Wednesday August 13, 2025 1:45pm - 2:45pm EDT Room 2
Black Bottom Archives (BBA) is a living community archive dedicated to sharing and preserving the stories of Black Detroit and resisting the erasure and whitewashing of Detroit’s history. Before its destruction in the 1960s, Black Bottom thrived as a predominantly Black neighborhood, home to thousands of residents, over 100 Black-owned businesses, schools, churches, and cultural landmarks. The tragic process of “urban renewal,” often referred to as “negro removal,” led to the devastation of homes and cherished spaces as the city prioritized profit over the vibrant community. Once a thriving center of Black culture and life, it was replaced by a freeway, displacing business owners and residents alike. Today, this crucial history still remains unknown to many Black Detroiters, but Black Bottom Archives (BBA) is committed to changing that narrative through community organizing and digital tools. The organization employs visual installations like the Black Bottom Street View exhibit alongside innovative digital mappings to honor and reclaim the legacy of a neighborhood that served as the heartline for Black Detroiters during the Great Migration. This session will provide hands-on instruction on incorporating BBA's digital archive materials into their classroom, including oral histories and an interactive digital map that reconstructs the Black Bottom and Paradise Valley communities. Attendees will also learn best practices for discussing the history of Black Bottom and making connections to present-day realities of displacement.
Director of Archives and Education, Black Bottom Archives
Marcia (she/her) is a proud Detroiter, Black queer feminist archivist, memory worker, and abolitionist organizer. Marcia is an alum of Marygrove College where she received her Bachelors in Political Science and Sociology, and an alum of the University of Texas at Austin where she... Read More →
Wednesday August 13, 2025 1:45pm - 2:45pm EDT Room 5
A Brooklyn, New York native, Dr. Jeffries earned his undergraduate degree from Morehouse College, where he was initiated into the Pi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in American history, specializing in African American history, from Duke University.Dr... Read More →
Wednesday August 13, 2025 1:45pm - 2:45pm EDT Auditorium
Our session will introduce educators to student-appropriate Native American books. It will explore how Native American literature can be used in the classroom to introduce students to culture, heritage, and ways of life that may differ from their own.This could be in the form of projects or cultural activities. This session will celebrate diversity and inclusion of students and focus on building a safe learning environment.
In this session, secondary level educators will be introduced to a variety of authors and books with Native American (Indigenous) characters to help foster cultural understanding, equity, and inclusion in the learning community. According to Michigan’s state data there are approximately 8,291 Native American students enrolled in public schools. Native American students need to see characters like themselves being represented in texts to encourage them to grow into themselves. “By promoting diversity in children’s literature we can ensure the next generation of Native American children can see themselves represented in the books they read” (Squires The Importance of Native American Literature).
By including lessons on Native American history and culture, teachers can successfully expose students to accurate and truthful information, including assimilation and boarding schools. Even though some pieces of their history can be challenging to learn, teachers can also foster excitement and joy by bringing in different cultural activities. Including bringing in tribal elders from the community for storytelling with the students, taking them on experiential field trips, and implementing culture into the classroom.
In our session’s slide show we will showcase books for students at a variety of grade levels that are easily accessible for teachers to locate and purchase. After time to browse hard copy books, you will walk away with lists of grade appropriate books, online links, and resources. Work time will be provided where you can reflect on how to incorporate Native American literature into your current lessons or units being taught. Many Native American texts are a great way to introduce a project to your students.
Our session will also explore how to evaluate quality texts and materials for authenticity. We will provide a rubric from the National Museum of American Indians with an explanation of how they score materials for culturally appropriate and responsive texts. We will explain how to evaluate Native American texts for authenticity and accuracy by using the following sources: The National Museum of the American Indian NativeKnowledge360 Rubric, and The American Indian Library Association recommended book list. These sources will give teachers the tools to make selections of texts for their classroom.
Wendy Gilliard is a veteran teacher with 28 years of experience in various grade levels at the elementary and middle school level. She has been teaching middle school language arts at the Sault Area Public Schools for the past eight years. Wendy is currently teaching sixth grade ELA... Read More →
Sydnie Dumas is a recent graduate of Central Michigan University with a B.S. in Secondary Education with a focus on English Language and History. She is currently teaching 7th grade English Language Arts at The Sault Area Middle School in the rural community of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan... Read More →
Kendall Moser is a first year teacher at Sault Area Middle School, recently graduated Suma Cum Laude from Lake Superior State University with a B.S. in Secondary Education with a focus on English Language Arts. She is currently teaching 7th grade English Language Arts. Kendall is... Read More →
Wednesday August 13, 2025 1:45pm - 2:45pm EDT Room 3
As part of the Wayne County Teaching Diverse Histories Summit, this session will explore how The Zekelman Holocaust Center serves as a powerful site for historical inquiry and disciplinary literacy. Educators will examine how museum assets—artifacts, survivor testimonies, and exhibits—can support student inquiry and deepen engagement with complex histories. Through culturally responsive, inquiry-based, and place-based pedagogical approaches, participants will develop strategies to integrate museum-based learning into their classrooms. This session will equip teachers with the tools to help students critically analyze historical evidence, explore the experiences of marginalized communities, and make meaningful connections between the past and present. By the end of the session, educators will have a framework for using The HC’s resources to enrich their teaching and foster inclusive, inquiry-driven historical learning.
Renea Di Bella is the Education Specialist at The HC. She has an M.A. in Education from Eastern Michigan University, with a concentration in curriculum and instruction for diverse learning groups. Renea taught 8th grade Social Studies at Scarlett Middle School in Ann Arbor, MI for... Read More →
Wednesday August 13, 2025 1:45pm - 2:45pm EDT Room 4
The backbeat is one of the foundational rhythmic elements of Black American music. In this session, participants will learn a pedagogical approach for teaching this rhythm through the lens of three key genres: jazz, techno, and hip-hop. Concurrent with this history of the backbeat, this session will also analyze the preservation and erasure of the musical history of Detroit, giving educators a set of tools to help students make meaningful, deep connections with the musical history of Detroit.
Student-centered inquiry and historical investigation will be at the heart of this presentation. First, a bit of scaffolding knowledge of music theory and music history will be provided to the attendees. Educators in this session will get a hands-on, kinesthetic approach to teaching the music theory behind the backbeat (read: there will be stomping and clapping) that can easily be applied to students in a classroom setting. This analysis of the backbeat will serve as a springboard into music history, viewing how the backbeat is used in songs both inside and outside the Black American musical lineage and/or the music of Detroit. Specific listening examples will be given to show how elements of the backbeat (and all of the histories wrapped up inside of it) have been preserved, rewritten, and/or erased. Ultimately, these activities can be used by educators to help drive students into inquiry-based learning and make meaningful, deep connections between the modern popular music they listen to and the genres in the Black American musical lineage (How does the music I listen to connect to Detroit musical history? How is this history preserved or erased in the pop music of today?).
The "Lavender Scare" was a period of persecution and discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals in the federal government, coinciding with (and arguably outlasting) the Red Scare and McCarthyism, where homosexuality was equated with communist subversion and led to the firing and forced resignation of thousands of federal employees. In this session, participants will interact with a lesson plan and resources from the Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy. The focus of this lesson will be to use congressional investigations and hearings to deepen student understanding of the reality of the “Lavender Scare”. Students will be tasked with examining a time when government policy both implicitly and explicitly sought to marginalize LGBTQ+ Americans and analyze the issues of equity, power, and justice created when society gives in to fear and paranoia.
