Black History Month Seminar

Hall Info Published on : 2/17/2005

Hall of Famer Carl Eller, USA Today’s Jarrett Bell, and Fendrich R. Clark , a professor atMount Union College took part in a panel discussion with hundreds of high school students today at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The panel of Carl Eller (left), Jarrett Bell (center), and Fendrich Clark (right) converse with the students during Thursday's program.

Nearly 500 students from around northeast Ohio attended the special seminar, The Changing Roles of African Americans in Pro Football while hundreds of other students joined via distance learning technology.

The seminar, offered in two 90-minute sessions, was developed as part of the Hall’s Educational Outreach Program. This marked the third consecutive year of special educational programming in observance of Black History Month.

The panel, moderated by the Hall’s VP of Communications/Exhibits Joe Horrigan, offered views from the perspective of three African Americans - a professional football player, a member of the national media, and an individual from the academic community.

The guest panelists and students received a special surprise when they learned that Hall of Famer Bill Willis was sitting in via distance learning technology. Willis, who helped permanently break pro football’s color barrier in 1946, was a special guest of South High School in Columbus.

The distance learning technology was provided to the Hall of Fame by the Stark County Educational Service Center.

Participating Schools

Eighteen schools took part in today’s program either in person or via distance learning technology. They included: Boardman High School, Canton McKinley High School, Canton South High School, East Canton High School, East Tech. High School, Glenoak High School, Jackson Milton High School, Jackson High School, Kenmore High School, Maple Heights High School, Perry High School, Pfeiffer Middle School, Sandy Valley High School, South High School, Streetsboro High School, Warrensville High School, Washington High School, and Woodrow Wilson High School.

Teacher Activity Guide

Educators may download and use in the classroom the following activity guide developed for our Changing Role of African Americans in Pro Football seminar. The work activities in this guide meet national education standards and have been developed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame Educational Advisory Committee. The material remains the copyrighted property of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

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