A Peer Review

Any writer knows that the completion of a paper is a lengthy process. Sometimes it is hard to notice errors in your own paper while rigorously throwing ideas on a notepad or keyboard. In class we were paired up with a classmate to make the process a little easier. This was a great help, and I learned many things as a result of doing this. I learned that to review a paper you have to have a rubric with a list of objectives to go by in order to correct any problems that are present in the paper. You have to basically dissect each portion of the paper, the thesis, each main point, and the conclusion of the paper to see if it is all relative to the point that you are trying to prove/disprove. The other aspect of reviewing a paper is just a general proofread, ensuring that the font is correct, there are no grammatical errors, and that you have written the paper in the format that is required. There is also a writing center on campus that can provide these services to students free of charge, making the final draft of the paper much less stressful than it has to be. After using all of these resources, the outcome of my paper will be fine tuned and less subject to pesky red marks that haunt many student's papers.

Website Building with Dreamweaver

In 2007, the Netcraft Web Server Survey estimated that there were about 108 million websites in existence, and every day that number continues to grow. Dreamweaver is a Microsoft program that provides a way for the public to create their own unique sites. A site can be very basic, and on the other end of the spectrum it can be quite complex. As I embark on the journey of building my website for my digital project, there are some concerns I have with this program. First and foremost, to someone that isn't "tech savvy", this website building process isn't easy. A lot of the items that are needed to make the entire site work aren't necessarily readily available, which can create some definite setbacks to anyone's site. I just feel like I will spend more time reading a users manual to the program than actually building the site, so that makes the process a little boring to me. I do understand that a lot is involved when it comes to building a web site, which consequently is why the program is set up the way that it is. On the bright side of things, the structuring process has raised some questions on the content that I intend on making visible to viewers. Do I want this to look like a timeline? How is this information connected to other information on the site? How can I link everything together for a better flowing page? These are examples of questions that can also be applied to my research paper, and can help in the completion of it as well. When the entire process is finished I hope that they can complement each other, and I will have successfully answered all of these questions, and have provided an informative and useful site to my viewers.

Progress Report

Listed below is a general progress report that I have put together on my digital project and research paper over Samuel Walker Houston. This is the progress I have made on my project up until October 20Th.



Samuel Walker Houston Project: Progress Report

Name: Cory Reaves

Title: “Samuel Walker Houston, Modernizer of Huntsville African American Education”
Summary of Progress: Many people are completely unaware of how African Americans were educated prior to desegregation. Samuel Walker Houston was one distinguished figure who took charge at the roots of this issue. Amongst other decorated achievements, he founded the Galilee Community School, which was most likely the first school for African American children in not only Huntsville, but all of Texas during this time. This digital project is designed to take a look back at how Samuel Walker Houston went about accomplishing such a feat, some of the hardships he faced in his efforts, and how he led the small school at Galilee with a single teacher when it began in 1907, to become consolidated with the Huntsville Independent School District in 1930. The research completed leading up to this point consists of six primary sources that are all letters from former president of Sam Houston Normal Institute (the earlier name of SHSU) Harry F. Estill’s records. This first is a letter from who is thought to be President Estill to Henry S. Pritchett, asking for funds to help support the school at Galilee. The next two letters are back and forth from Samuel Walker Houston and President Estill regarding a situation about the possible loss of funding from the " Jeanes Fund”. President Estill looks into the situation and is answered by President of Negro Rural School Fund Anna T. Jeanes Foundation, James H. Dillard in the following two letters concerning the appropriations. The final letter is again from President Estill to Samuel Walker Houston, in which he describes the selling and/or disposal of an old gymnasium building, and refers Samuel Walker Houston to speak with J.L. Pritchett. In accordance with these six letters, two additional secondary sources on the topic are included in the investigation. One is information explaining what exactly the JeanesFund is and who it is available to. The second is an article from “The Handbook of Texas Online”, which summarizes the life and accomplishments of Samuel Walker Houston.

Works Cited:
· Estill, Harry F. "President's Papers." Newton Gresham Library Archives (1912-1913): Aug 1912-Mar 1913.
· Handbook of Texas Online, s.v.”,” http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/HH/fhobs.html (accessed September 14, 2009).
· Louisa County Historical Society, "The Jeanes Fund." http://louisaheritage.org/enlg/JeanesFund.htm (accessed October 18, 2009).

Digital Project Outline:
Samuel Walker Houston, Modernizer of Huntsville African American Education

Thesis: This digital project is designed to take a look back at how Samuel Walker Houston went about founding Galilee Community School, some of the hardships he faced in his efforts, and how he led the small school with a single teacher when it began in 1907, to become consolidated with the Huntsville Independent School District in 1930.

Outline:

I. The foundation of Galilee Community School

A. Funding the school
1. The Jeanes Fund
2. Additional efforts to raise funds

II. Educational Idealism of Galilee Community School

Samuel Walker Houston Research Paper

Samuel Walker Houston
Modernizer of Huntsville African American Education

Many people are completely unaware of how African Americans were educated prior to desegregation. Samuel Walker Houston was one distinguished figure who took charge at the roots of this issue. Amongst other decorated achievements, he founded the Galilee Community School, which was most likely the first school for African American children in not only Huntsville, but all of Texas during this time. This research paper is a focus on how Samuel Walker Houston went about accomplishing such a feat, some of the hardships he faced in his efforts, and how he led the small school at Galilee with a single teacher when it began in 1907, to become consolidated with the Huntsville Independent School District in 1930.
Before looking at the Galilee Community School, it’s important to take a look back at Samuel Walker Houston’s earlier years to get an idea of how he became such the pioneer in education. He was very different from his African American peers, and was also undoubtedly a lucky child because he never had to be a slave to anyone. Furthermore, unlike many other African American children he had parents that could support him financially to pursue future endeavors. He could learn to read and write from the direct teachings of and the examples set by both parents. Samuel had additional help in his education most likely from the church or community schools around the area 1 which prepared him to attend Atlanta University, and even attending any sort of college was something that was quite uncommon to most African Americans during this day and age. After attending college Samuel had quite a resume, having worked in Washington D.C. and running the Huntsville Times, a local newspaper aimed at the black community. After that, he taught at Grimes County in the Red Hill Community School, which may have been his first real inspiration to be an educator. 2 After his time there, he made his way to Galilee in 1906 and began teaching in the small community. The building at Galilee was a twelve-by-fourteen foot wooden box with one door and two windows. It was so dilapidated that Samuel refused to teach there, and even used $4 out of his $35 a month salary to rent the local Galilee Methodist Church to teach out of. He and one other teacher, Miss Mamie Arnold taught grades one through six there. 3
With Samuel Walker Houston teaching in the church, the foundation for the Galilee Community School was finally set. Houston and a board of trustees very soon thereafter bought one acre of land to build a school rather than continue renting out the church. The new school was built, consisting of a four-room building and a separate vocational shop in the first year; it also took on a new name, Sam Houston Industrial Training School. The school was a large success, and by the second year four and a half extra acres were purchased in addition to three new teachers hired to support a student body of eighty young African American students. 4 Since the school was growing at an exponential rate, the Sam Houston Industrial Training School needed supplementary funds to pay for expenses. Samuel Walker Houston was dedicated in his efforts to making the school a major success, so he found ways to raise money for the school. Some of those resources were raised by the state government, private citizens, and such philanthropic organizations as John D. Rockefeller’s General Education Board, the Rosenwald Fund, and the Slater Fund.5 Another fundraiser for the school was the Jeanes Fund, which was the subject of a bit of controversy for a moment in the school’s history.
The Jeanes Fund was set up by Anna Thomas Jeanes, a Quaker of Philadelphia, who survived all other members of her family and inherited the family's wealth. She was a remarkable woman with a vision for Christian peace which she used her fortune to promote. Anna felt that others had given to the larger schools, so if she could, she wanted to help "the little country schools." Therefore, in 1907, Jeanes set aside one million dollars to fund a program for the fostering of rudimentary education in small, African-American rural schools. The fund was formally named the Negro Rural School Fund, Anna T. Jeanes Foundation. James Dillard was appointed the fund’s president. 6 The importance of this fund became apparent in 1912, when one of the teachers for Sam Houston Industrial Training School failed to make sure certain reports were filed, so Samuel Walker Houston had to step in to assure that the funds were not lost. In a lengthy letter to President Harry Estill of Sam Houston Normal Institute, (now Sam Houston State University) Samuel Walker Houston said the domestic science teacher had been so negligent in this particular that Dr. Dillard threatened to discontinue the appropriation another year and perhaps some. He then said that he would even go as far as to getting rid of the teacher in order to make sure that the reports were sent in a timely fashion.7 This truly showed the lengths that Samuel Walker Houston was willing to go to in order to keep his school alive, and if anyone that was part of the school did not handle their affairs correctly, then he would find somebody that would. However, the matter never got out of hand, because President Estill contacted Dr. Dillard, in which Dr. Dillard replied that it was not intended that the teacher working under the Jeanes Fund give so much of her time to his (Houston’s) school. 7 This is just one example of Samuel Walker Houston’s commitment to his school, which is one important philosophy he learned from his parents, as well as other great leaders that he came in contact with and learned about. He carried this mentality throughout his school, and incorporated these values into the curriculum of the classrooms.
Samuel Walker Houston ran his school based off of the principles of General Samuel Chapman Armstrong, founder of Hampton Institute. The curriculum at the school consisted of not only a basic education, but also self sufficiency of all students that attended. 8 The education was also directed toward the time period, and since women’s role in society at that time focused primarily on the home, they were taught sewing, cooking, and basic science among other things. Boys were taught woodworks, manual training, carpentry, mathematics, and general problem solving tactics. 9
The Sam Houston Industrial Training School would set the precedent for African American students in the Huntsville area and later on a larger scale in Texas. Samuel Walker Houston’s relentless efforts to spread knowledge to young minds proved very successful to many students who without him, may not have come to be such flourishing minds in their respective studies.

Footnotes:

1. Prather, Patricia and Monday, Jane. Joshua Houston: From Slave to Statesman. (Denton: University of North Texas Press, 1993).p.1

2. Lede, Samuel Walker Houston, p. 26; Hazel Price Interview, 1992

3. Prather, Patricia and Monday, Jane. Joshua Houston: From Slave to Statesman. (Denton: University of North Texas Press, 1993).p.2

4. Lede, Samuel Walker Houston p. 29, 35

5. Handbook of Texas Online, s.v.”,” http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/HH/fhobs.html (accessed September 14, 2009).

6. Louisa County Historical Society, "The Jeanes Fund." http://louisaheritage.org/enlg/JeanesFund.htm (accessed October 18, 2009).

7. Estill, Harry F. "President's Papers." Newton Gresham Library Archives (1912-1913): Aug 1912-Mar 1913.

8.Lede, Samuel Walker Houston, p. 31

9. Prather, Patricia and Monday, Jane. Joshua Houston: From Slave to Statesman. (Denton: University of North Texas Press, 1993).p. 3

Presentation at Huntsville State Park

Yesterday we finally held our major class presentation at Huntsville State Park. The turnout was great, with probably seventy or eighty people having showed up. Everything ran smoothly, from the setup, to the cooking, to the speeches, until the finish. When I presented my speech over the CCC, I felt that it was pretty much well received by the audience, (although there were a few students who acted as if that they really didn't care to be there) and I enjoyed sharing the information on such an important aspect of the park. I took from the experience that it's a lot harder than it seems to produce not only a public history exhibit, but also takes quite a bit of diligence and dedication as a group to make a function similar to this successful. I commend Dr. Littlejohn and my classmates for stepping up to the challenge and tackling this project head on swimmingly. In the future I know that I'll be less stressed without a doubt when it comes to a project of this magnitude.

Huntsville State Park Practice Run

Although our class planned to make a practice run at the Huntsville State Park on October 6th, we went ahead and met in the classroom to resolve all of our issues before the big event. Overall I think the class did a great job making preparations and getting together the necessary materials needed for the presentation. We had the plans ready for the food, geocaching, music, and for all of our group project boards. It seemed that the morale for the event was high and we were all anxious to get it kicked off. Personally I felt well organized and completely ready for every situation (best or worst case scenario) that I could have been put in. It took me about four and a half hours to complete my project and speech, but I was better coordinated for having spent so much time on it. My project was about the CCC and their contributions to the park, and since they played such a large role in building the park, I think that the message was well obtained. I was lucky to have a topic that was such an important factor for the park, because there was an abundance of information regarding the topic.

Huntsville State Park Project

On October 8 our class is making a presentation at the Huntsville State Park over the Great Depression era (which is when the park was built). We are all chipping in to make the presentation as big of a success as we hope to. I am making a sort of exhibit over the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) showing the contributions in creating portions of the park including the dam that makes Lake Raven, and the group recreation hall. I am also part of the committee in charge of food for the event. I am hoping to get a donation from Wal-Mart to help finance the operation. Hopefully there will be about one hundred people that show up to our presentation, so any help we can get will be great. I also have to go to the store and see how much it all will cost for all of the stuff that we need for the food portion of the day. I am anticipating the turnout for the day, and also hoping that everything goes as smooth as I have invisioned during this planning process.