This week was a time to honor the memory of the Rev. Martin Luther King , Jr., and, for many of us, a time to reflect on the changes he worked to bring about. In a recent Washington Post article, former T.C. Williams High School assistant football coach William Yoast reminisced about the events of 1971, when the two Alexandria, Virginia high schools were combined to complete the integration required by Brown v. Board of Education. BoardBuzz readers may be familiar with the 2000 film, Remember the Titans, which depicted this struggle to bring together a racially-mixed group of kids and turn them into a championship team. Yoast and head coach, Herman Boone (played by Denzel Washington in the movie) had to go way beyond just teaching football plays they had to change attitudes and “help correct a mistake segregation.” The coaches got to know their players on a personal level, meeting their parents, visiting their homes, and doing all they could to foster an atmosphere of mutual respect. The team went on to an undefeated season and won the state championship.
Titans head coach, Herman Boone, will be the Fellowship Speaker on Sunday, April 11 at the NSBA 2010 Annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois, where he will share his own memories of this historic and inspiring experience.
