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Grant to help Williamsburg-James City County teacher explore Virginia’s Reconstruction-era history

Every year that Alynn Parham teaches African American history at Jamestown High School, she sets a goal. Two years ago, it was to incorporate project-based learning, and last year she sought to include place-based learning, which she describes as “showing the emphasis of physical space in history.”

This year, the Virginia Humanities will assist Parham in her latest goal: showing her students how Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era led to a new Black reform movement.

Parham is one of seven recipients of the Virginia Humanities’ 2024 K-12 Educator Fellowship. The fellowship aims to support educators in the development of two lesson plans that meet the Virginia Standards of Learning and will be accessible to other educators on the Virginia Humanities Education website.

“Having this opportunity is going to help me, not just as a historian, but as a teacher,” said Parham, who will spend the next nine months curating these lesson plans. “Because this will allow me to create learning experiences for other teachers across the state.”

Students are often taught about the failures of the Reconstruction era, explained Parham, but not the resulting push for equality by Black American activists, such as Ida B. Wells. As an educator fellow, Parham aims to create a lesson plan that sheds light on this movement, particularly on Black historical figures from Virginia and its neighboring states.

In addition, Parham and her students will continue engaging in place-based learning by examining the Green Book, a traveler’s guide for Black individuals that was popularized in the Jim Crow South and identifies locations in Virginia where Black Americans could safely travel.

“There’s so much history in our country, especially in our state,” Parham said. “There’s only so much that’s fit and approved in a textbook, and that’s where I’m hoping that I can fill in that gap.”

She will spend the summer crafting an “inquiry design module” for her unit on Reconstruction. This module will allow for a more interactive experience, in which students lead their own learning. Her second lesson plan will be project-based: Students will create a story map based on the Green Book and draw connections to the historical contexts of specific locations.

Parham will receive a stipend, along with funding for supplies and research, from the Virginia Humanities. She will also work with other educator fellows to create a professional development experience.

Parham has taught social studies at Jamestown High School for six years, including world history, world geography and African American history. In addition, she is team coach of the Junior Varsity Scholastic Bowl and co-sponsor of the African American Heritage 365 Scholastic Bowl.

Parham previously served as president of the Williamsburg-James City Education Association for three years, and currently serves as a district president on the Virginia Education Association Board of Directors.

“I’ve always had a natural connection with history,” said Parham, who graduated from Virginia State University with a history degree, received her master’s in curriculum and instruction from William & Mary and went on to student-teach at Hornsby Middle School.

Parham traces her fascination with history back to the fourth grade, when her mother’s friend, a museum curator, showed Parham some Egyptian artifacts.

Ever since, Parham has been eager to soak up as much historical knowledge as she can — from European to American, Native American and African American history — her interest continued to grow.

“Education is a very strong foundation in my family,” said Parham, whose parents, grandparents and great-grandparents were all educators.

Despite coming from a long line of educators, Parham said that she didn’t discover her love for teaching until she had an opportunity to lead a class review lesson in the eighth grade. The experience solidified teaching as her career path — the rest is history.

Today, at Jamestown High School, Parham works with her students to consider why historical events occurred, challenging them to look at how the past can inform the future. This approach is a part of her desire to promote a “holistic understanding” of history.

There’s never a dull moment in the classroom, Parham said, because her students always ask questions that deepen their knowledge and open up a larger discussion.

“If they feel that they can be open and honest with me and want to share their opinion, then they’re open to hearing other opinions,” said Parham, whose main goal as an educator is to provide her students with a safe space for learning and engaging in civil discourse.

When asked what gets her students excited to learn about history, Parham pointed to the field trips that actively engage her students in the content they’re learning. Her class takes trips to Fort Monroe and the Virginia Museum of History and Culture.

Parham also attributes her students’ eagerness to learn about history to her open honesty, passion and care.

“Her love of the content is infectious to them,” said Jamestown High School’s lead social studies teacher Molly Sandling, referring to Parham’s “energy” and “enthusiasm.”

Parham noted her students’ excitement for the Advanced Placement African American studies class, which she will teach for the first time in the upcoming fall semester, as another testament to the bond she has with them.

“It really shows how far I’ve grown as a teacher,” she said. “How much the students trust me with their learning, and the trust they have to take this course.”

Williamsburg-James City County Schools first began offering African American history in the 2021-22 school year and African American literature in the 2023-24 school year, but next fall will be the first time that AP African American studies will be offered for all WJCC high schools. The course was offered as part of a pilot program this year in 700 schools across 40 states.

Evelyn Davidson, ejwdavidson@gmail.com