Department of Education
Date February 6, 2023
All News

Civil Rights Trip is "Transformative" for Education Studies and Dance Concentrator

By Jada Wooten '24

Jada Wooten '24 had an opportunity to study and experience the rich history and culture of Mississippi over Winter Break as part of the Brown-Tougaloo Partnership Program's Civil Rights Trip sponsored by the Swearer Center.

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Jada (R) and a friend at Bully's, "a soul food restaurant that felt like an extension of my grandma's kitchen."

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Jada and other trip participants at Bully's, "a soul food restaurant that felt like an extension of my grandma's kitchen."

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Outside of the Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.

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City mural

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City mural

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Mural outside of the Mississippi Arts Commission i-Serve Project Site

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City mural

My name is Jada Wooten. I am a junior from Ann Arbor, Michigan double concentrating in education studies and dance. 

When I was applying to Brown, two of my biggest supporters were my family friends, the Joneses, who met each other through the Brown-Tougaloo Partnership. Mrs. Jones was a Tougaloo student who spent a semester at Brown. She met Dr. Jones in the mailroom and it was love at first sight. They were married for over three decades with four kids and three grandchildren before Mrs. Jones sadly passed away from breast cancer. The Joneses along with the Brown-Tougaloo Partnership hold a special place in my heart, as I would likely not be at Brown without them. So when the trip was advertised to Royce fellows, I immediately applied.  

Fittingly, my highlight of the trip is connected to both my passion for education and dance. One day, we went to the Mississippi Arts Commission to volunteer at a program called iServe. It was an afterschool program where students received academic support and access to arts programming. Several of the other volunteers were Tougaloo College students and the program director was a Tougaloo alum. At iServe, I not only assisted a third-grade student with her science and English homework but also learned that she plans to study music at Tougaloo and that one of her favorite songs is "Stitches" by Shawn Mendes. We also went outside to play Tag; Red Light, Green Light; and Simon Says. However, I think everyone would agree the most amusing outdoor activity was doing TikTok dances together. I found myself dancing one more time as I joined the ballet class for an exercise before departing. iServe was the highlight of my trip because it reminded me of the importance of arts education and that my vision for the world is already a reality, it is just a reality that needs to be expanded. 

This trip was transformative because everything felt informed by history and everyone showed so much community care. We would go to a historical site such as the courtroom of Emmett Till's trial, then at Emmett Till academy students were being taught his story along with other histories of Drew, Mississippi. At Tougaloo, we saw a painting of the Tougaloo Nine in the archives, and just a couple of days ago one of my social media friends from Tougaloo posted about the Tougaloo Nine as part of Black History Month. When we went to the Fanny Lou Hamer memorial, we not only learned her story but also about current efforts to develop a driving tour of the Delta. The driving tour is one example of people investing in both history and community since the tour was developed to teach people about the Civil Rights Movement in Jackson and the tour's creation required students at Emmett Till academy and their elders to work together. Another intergenerational project was iServe because it was a community of elementary school students, middle school students, college students, and adults. In brief, iServe and the entire trip were transformative because they reminded me of the importance of history and community.   
 

Learn more about the Education Studies concentration.
Learn more about the Brown Tougaloo Partnership Program.