February is Black History Month in the United States, and over the last month, we have engaged in a number of learning opportunities throughout our school community. Black History Month stems from work nearly a century ago by historian Carter Woodson to ensure recognition of the vital role that African American have played in US history. It is an important time to study and celebrate the history of African Americans—to reckon with centuries of injustice and to recognize the extraordinary contributions they have made to our country. It is celebrated in February every year to honor the February birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln and their leadership to end slavery.

At SAS, we have shared engaging Black history stories across our social media and our students have engaged in deeper learning through books, activities, lessons, and discussions. Our elementary school librarians, for example, curated a wide variety of stories celebrating great figures from African American history through Epic book collections in addition to creative art pieces that were made and displayed in the library.

In the eighth grade Spanish dual language immersion program, students learned about two prominent abolitionists who fought to end slavery—Fredrick Douglass and Sojourner Truth. Students discussed the civil rights movement of the 1950s-60s and its relevance in confronting racial inequality today. Additionally, they learned about African heritage in the Spanish-speaking world by studying the celebration of "Candombe" in Uruguay.

Our high school featured a number of Black History Month activities, including art exhibitions in the high school foyer, discussions in our advisory periods, and a segment in our student-produced Studio 41 weekly news feature. In our US history classes students are taking the time to focus each day on prominent figures in African American history and, in one project, to compare the cultural activities of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s to what is happening in today's America.

We're grateful for the thoughtfulness and participation of our students and faculty across the school. We are committed to continuing to focus on and celebrate the history of African Americans during Black History Month and throughout the year.