FEBRUARY IS BLACK HISTORY MONTH.
\ nBorn in Texas and raised on a farm\, she loved school and walked four
miles every day to attend a one-room all-black school through 8th grade. W
orking with her mother and two sisters\, she did laundry\, cleaned homes\,
and picked cotton to earn money so she could finish her education. At age
18\, she enrolled in the Oklahoma Colored Agricultural Normal University\
, but she only had enough money for one year. Traveling north to
Chic
ago to live with her brothers\, she heard stories from pilots returning fr
om World War I and decided to become a pilot. After applying to three Amer
ican aviation schools that refused to teach her\, this smart\, naturally g
ifted woman did not give up. Learning enough French to get by\, she enroll
ed in a French school\, the only black person in the class\, and finished
the ten-month course in eight months! \;
In 1921 Bessie Colema n became the first African American woman to earn her pilots&rsquo\; licen se. Never one to let other people define her limitations\; she travelled t o France to learn to fly when American flight schools refused her because of her race. \;In later years she shared her experiences with children \, encouraging them with the words\, "you too can fly&rdquo\;. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;&n bsp\; \; \;
\nPerformer: \;Dr. Daisy Century recalls the thrill of receiving a standing ovation for her 3rd grade recitation of Th e Creation and credits this as the beginning of her desire to perform. Tra ined as a teacher\, Century earned a BA in Biology at Claflin College\, a master&rsquo\;s in science education \;from South Carolina University and a PhD from Temple University\, also in Science Education. This natural ly talented teacher and actor couples scientific methods with creative ima gination in order to discover how the historical characters she interprets would respond to a given situation. An inspiring educator whose students have returned year after year to thank her for the difference she has made in their lives\, Daisy has continued to inspire through her thoroughly re searched\, dramatically intense portrayals. She is a published author\, wr iting under the name Emily Nelson\, and is an accomplished singer.
\nAt the conclusion of the program please feel free to take a brief online
survey here: http
s://www.projectoutcome.org/responses/80663