What is Black Excellence?
...We're glad you asked!
One commonality found in the lives of the Black heroes we honor is societies inability to recognize their genius during their lifetimes. Their blackness was always met with the stereotypical societal perception of Black people being inhuman, or inferior to white people. So much so, that Black athletes, politicians, and scholars could not do "just as good" as their white peers, but had to exceed the expectations set for their white peers to only then be viewed as decent.
Initially "Black Excellence" was a requirement, a necessity, an unspoken rule rooted in survival. Now, because of the selfless acts and generationally transcendent influence of the Black heroes that came before us, we are able to rewrite the narrative, and view Black Excellence as an innate characteristic rooted in our ability to exceed even the expectations we set for ourselves.
In essence, Black Excellence is being the best version of You in absolutely every thing you do.
Black Panther Breakfast
In honor of Community...
At J511we celebrate Black Excellence 365 days a year by facilitating interactive lessons honoring Black inventors, athletes, and community activists.
At the end of every February we host our annual Black Panther Party Breakfast. We do this to commemorate the work done by the Black Panther Party's Free Breakfast Program. A program put together by the Black Panthers in collaboration with community members, and community owned businesses.
Through this interactive experience we teach our children different elements of community, while also granting them the feeling of gratification that comes with doing good for their community.
Learning Black History...
...by Experiencing Black History.
Who invented the ironing board? Who is known as "The Father of Ice Cream"? Who was the first Black Woman to go into Outer Space?... These are just a few questions that our J511 friends can help you answer.
At Journey 5:11 Academy our kids learn Black History not just by studying text, but through teacher curated experiences honoring our many Black Hero's and Heroine's.
Our intention is to instill a sense of confidence in our students, by showing them excellence being exemplified by people that look like them.
