The winner of Tracy High School’s Black History Month Door Decorating Contest this year was Ms. Scott, an Advanced English 11, English 4, and IB English 1 teacher, whose door honored influential educators and advocates for Black voices in education.
Her door featured more than 20 icons, including Ruby Bridges, the first African American child to integrate an American school; Michelle Obama, who played a major role in expanding access to free school lunches; and Booker T. Washington, founder of Tuskegee University, a historically Black college.
Each February, Tracy High’s Black Student Union hosts the door decorating contest to highlight Black excellence and educate students about the significant contributions African Americans have made to global history.
“Our goal is always to educate and to create a safer place to hold discussions about Black history and rewrite the narrative surrounding Black culture,” said Payton Brown, one of the union’s two vice presidents.
However, this year, the competition aspect of the event sparked discussion. Several teachers voiced concerns, saying the competitive nature of the contest detracted from its educational purpose. Some felt the emphasis was placed too much on aesthetics rather than learning. Others suggested that making it a competition discouraged participation.
“Yeah, it was kind of weird,” said Alana Placido, the second vice president. “We felt like the competition was what really encouraged our participants… We had to get creative when it came to finding a compromise.”
And get creative they did. In previous years, the only door highlighted by the club was the winner. Unless students happened to pass by each decorated door during class time and stopped to read them, they were really only learning about one historical figure.
To address this and expand awareness, the club adjusted its approach. This year, every participating teacher’s door was featured in the school announcements, accompanied by a short description. The process for choosing a winner was also changed.
Previously, only the five members of the executive board voted. This year, voting was opened to anyone who wanted to participate. A form with pictures of all the doors was shared on the club’s Instagram page and through Remind, a platform used for club updates.
“Overall, I think this year went really smoothly compared to last year,” said BSU President Dziadzom Djanorh.
The contest engaged much of Tracy High’s campus and even gained recognition at the state level from the Black Student Union of California United, a foundation that works to inspire, educate, organize and advocate for Black youth in California.
