What would it take for schools and communities to collaborate around efforts to provide a racially integrated, equitable and excellent education for all students in Kansas City, Missouri? Drawing on the past to seek new ways to integrate schools will contribute to community-wide efforts to address issues of social justice in educational communities.

The artifacts and videos available through this educational website explore and preserve oral histories, narratives, photos and documents related to the experiences of African American educators, students and community members who formed the legacy and struggle for educational equity and school integration in Kansas City, Missouri’s public school district. The focus of this project is on three eras: Segregation and Integration (1930 to 1970), Desegregation (1971 to 1997), and Re-segregation (1998 to present).

We invite visitors to this website to share their own stories and photos of school desegregation in the Community Yearbook. Educators are encouraged to use or adapt the free lesson plans that are available to download for instruction with K-12 and higher education audiences. An interdisciplinary team of faculty, a librarian, and a doctoral student continue to engage in research with community members to enhance this website.

The University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Education and the UMKC Division of Diversity and Inclusion provided funding to develop this oral history and educational website project.