Quaker Valley’s Black Student Union teaches valuable lessons to elementary students

Quaker Valley High School senior Olivia Jordan said maintaining traditions is important to her.

An older brother, Malcolm, founded the school’s Black Student Union in 2019. Another brother, Noah, later became president of the group designed to empower Black students and create a comfortable environment to share stories, experiences and history. He graduated in 2023.

Olivia now leads the student organization.

“I feel like it was just meant to be, for me to be in the leadership role,” said Olivia. “I like being (president) because I like to help other people and also hear their ideas at the same time. It’s just really important to have a leadership role in your life so you know what it’s like to be collaborative but also make your own decisions.

One of the student union’s signature programs is reading to elementary students during Black History Month.

That tradition continued Feb. 24 with about 20 out of the 25 union members reading to Edgeworth and Osborne Elementary K-3 students.

Stories focused around Black characters, authors and groundbreakers and overall messages of positivity and inspiration.

Books included “Oona,” “Mae Among the Stars” and “A Sweet Smell of Roses.”

“We were there to be readers for the elementary schoolers so they could see people that may look unfamiliar to them, and get them comfortable with people that look different,” said Olivia, who read at Osborne Elementary. “It’s really fulfilling.”

Quaker Valley has about 1,800 students.

According to a district ethnic diversity report, about 83% of the student population is white, 8% are multi-ethnic, a little more than 4% are Hispanic, a little more than 3% are Black, with the smaller percentages identified as Asian, Native American/Alaskan and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.

The reading program was also an opportunity for student union members to return to the elementary school they had attended during their Quaker Valley educational career.

Senior Vanessa Pickett serves as union vice president. She joined the group at the behest of her brother, Jakub, who graduated in 2023, as well as her friend Olivia.

“I kind of felt like I needed to be in a group surrounded by people that were in the same situation as me,” Vanessa said.

Vanessa read at Edgeworth. Her book showcased Mae Jemison, the first Black woman to travel in space.

Vanessa said she saw four Black students out of all the classes she visited.

She hopes the event made a lasting impact on all students and will lead to some joining the student union in the future.

“I like to have an influence on the younger generation because every year the teachers from elementary schools tell us how much the students look forward to this event,” Vanessa said. “We definitely leave an impact on them, to something to look forward to when they grow up even if they are not Black students. For the small amount of Black students, they’re excited to join the BSU when they’re older.”

Senior Dana Kromah also read at Edgeworth. His sister, Kathryn, a 2023 grad, got him involved in the union.

His story was “I Am Every Good Thing,” by Derrick Barnes and illustrated by Gordon C. James. It focuses on a young Black man who is proud of everything that makes him who he is.

Kromah said he noticed a few of the listeners seemed to be paying extra close attention.

“It’s great to read in front of kids,” he said. “For some classes I was reading in, there were young Black boys. I could tell they were a lot more intrigued about the stories than probably another storytime, just because it’s a book about someone that looks like them and someone who also looks like them was reading it. I was definitely like that when I was younger.”

Audience connections

Teachers at the respective elementary schools had different approaches when it came to how the students told stories.

Osborne kindergarten teacher Jamie Chappell said all four classes of that grade level — nearly 80 youngsters — met in a community room to hear students read stories.

One story read in kindergarten was of a Black athlete breaking barriers in tennis, and another had a message of unity and getting along with others.

Chappell said the high schoolers did an outstanding job and had a great audience. Keeping everyone’s attention was not a problem.

“Criss cross applesauce is like magic words,” Chappell said. “They were a good audience. Some of the books were a little longer and they did a nice job.

“We talk a lot about celebrating diversity. I think that is a really important part of this, and also recognizing the contributions of Black people in all areas (and) all endeavors. It is really neat to see former students come back and be in that leadership role and be presenting and reading the stories. We were really proud. A lot of the teachers were excited to see the students coming in. It was a mini reunion.”

Chappell said her students also learned about other historic figures including Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, as well as the history of the steel drum, during Black History Month.

Edgeworth third grade teacher Elise Anderchak said her class was split up into three groups of about seven students each, with each one having their own reader.

“They heard three different stories in here, each one about 10 minutes,” Anderchak said. “I liked to have them in that smaller group because they can interact with the high school student and do a bit of question and answer and they rotate.

“It gets them closer to the high school students so they can see the pictures and hear the story a little bit more clearly. All three of the students in my room interacted with them. They asked them questions throughout the story.”

Anderchak said she believes it was as much of a joyous occasion for the little ones seeing older students and thinking about the future, as it was for the teachers and the nostalgia.

“From the teacher perspective, one of our greatest joys is having our alumni students come back for any reason,” she said. “Especially something as important as this one. … Two out of the three (high school) students that were (reading) in my class, I had them in third grade. It’s always such a proud moment to see them kind of all grown up and so well-spoken and so successful and so comfortable in front of students.”

Other union activities

Black Student Union members also inserted local Black history into their high school daily morning announcements in February.

That task was done by the underclassmen.

Most of the information was taken from the book “Images of America: African Americans in Sewickley Valley,” by Bettie Cole and Autumn Redcross.

Historical topics included the Sewickley Community Center, which was originally formed in 1935 as the Sewickley Colored Community Center.

It remains a community staple offering a variety of recreational and educational programs for Sewickley Valley area residents.

Other recent Quaker Valley’s Black Student Union activities included a bake sale fundraiser, participating in Pittsburgh’s Eradicate Hate Global Summit, and hosting West Allegheny School District’s equity scholars.

BSU members said the district has been a great supporter of the group, particularly its adult advisor and district community youth worker Floyd Faulkner.

Faulkner commended the work of the union students and expects the elementary readings, which marked its fifth straight year, to continue every February.

“It is a way that the BSU celebrates Black History Month and it’s a group activity that our Black Student Union loves, he said Feb. 25. “They take pride in doing it. They really look forward to connecting with our elementary school kids and being a positive influence and voice in our school community. That’s one of the purposes (of BSU) to be a collective voice.”

Faulkner also said it is important for students to learn about their local history and look beyond the more nationally known cultural figures.

“We’ve worked with several members of the community to incorporate local (history),” he said. “We love to celebrate the contributions that African Americans have made not only on our country, but locally. There’s so much rich history. We know that history and that diversity is good for all. We feel that Sewickley is a very unique community. It is a great place for all of our kids to grow up.”

Editor’s note: An incorrect name in a photo caption has been corrected.