On September 5, 2018, the Charlotte Observer published an article highlighting that eight CMS schools experienced a decline in graduation rates by more than 10 points. The article stated that high poverty neighborhood schools were hit the hardest by this decline in graduation rates, and predominately Black, Hispanic, and economically disadvantaged students were impacted most. Additionally, national data in the United States has indicated that Black students consistently perform significantly low on academic assessments compared to White students. These factors and more, contribute to disproportionate rates of school discipline enforced upon Black students. According to the Civil Rights Data Collection (2015), Black students made up 72% of Out of School Suspensions in CMS schools. The need to foster conversations that connect our past to create potential remedies for our future community is critical towards building social capital and empowering economic mobility in Charlotte, NC.

For this reason, The Education of Blacks (1920 - 2020) Online Youth Exhibition project captures the educational experience, past and present, of Blacks in Charlotte, NC. This invaluable initiative bridges history with critical media pedagogy and digital arts to build understanding and empower action in our community. The project was a collaboration with the UNC Charlotte Urban Education Collaborative, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, I AM not the MEdia, Inc., Scholar Pamela Grundy, and educators from five local schools. The team worked to assist students in capturing historically marginalized educational experiences of the past and exploring today's educational system through digital media. This initiative encompassed historical workshop sessions for students led by Pamela Grundy and archival research sessions led by Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. Community interviews were recorded and edited by students from the Carolina School of Broadcasting and digital media workshops were conducted by I AM not the MEdia. After completion of the workshops, students developed an archival website with photographs, audio interviews, and digital artifacts that captured the educational experience of Blacks in Charlotte to the present day with the goal of educating the community.