The Academy is named in honor of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, an honorary member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. whose work led to the creation of Black History Month.

By Ashlee Green

Photo: Justin Laing, right, is a member of Omega Psi Phi and a teacher at the Omega Dr. Carter G. Woodson Academy. He coordinated this—and many previous years’—programs. Courtesy of Iota Phi Foundation

The Omega Dr. Carter G. Woodson Academy, which ran from February through mid-April this year, is a Saturday spring education program for students in grades 6 to 8. It’s in its 10th year.

The Academy is co-coordinated by the men of the Iota Phi Foundation and the Iota Phi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. It consists of a “culturally relevant STEAM curriculum,” according to its Eventbrite page. The Academy’s principles are Service, Scholarship, Perseverance, and Uplift. Students from the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are welcome to participate. The program is led by all Black male teachers. 

“What’s unique about this program is that we have some very dynamic and talented Black men teaching this course,” Dr. Rahmon Hart, director of community relations at Rivers Casino and chair of Iota Phi’s community outreach initiatives told The Northside Chronicle. “My doctorate is in educational leadership. I’m very in tune with [the fact that only] about 2% of teachers across the country are Black men. Our youth get to see, sometimes for the first time, a Black man delivering teaching in front of the classroom.”

The focus of this year’s Academy was in four parts. It covered the Great Migration, when over six million Black people migrated from the rural Southern U.S. to cities in the North, Midwest, and West from around 1916 to 1970; deconstructing “race” as a tool of Black oppression; Black freedom ideas, and Afro Futuristic art. The curriculum aims to build Black childrens’ awareness of their history and culture.

Justin Laing, founder and principal of Hillombo Consulting, member of Omega Psi Phi, and teacher at the Academy, coordinated this—and many previous years’—programs. The curriculum is built, he said, when the coordinator offers an idea to the brothers and each one weighs in.  

“It’s related to what the brothers can offer and their interests—what they feel close to,” he said. “We do everything as a collective.”

This year’s teachers were Brandon Jennings, Dr. Kelton Edmunds, Jay Ghosa, and Laing. 

The Academy is named in honor of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, an honorary member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. known as the “father of Black history.” Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) in 1915, which has since become the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). It was he, too, who initially designated a week in February as “Negro History Week,” which has become what we know now as Black History Month.

“Often, Black History Month is taught in an episodic way: Here’s a little bit about that person, here’s a little bit about this person,” said Laing. “Dr. Woodson taught in a thematic way.” All four teachers at the Academy, Laing explained, followed suit, “taking one idea and working for all eight weeks on that one idea.”

“The curriculum is also culturally relevant; we’re keeping their attention that way,” Dr. Hart said. “The curriculum is a part of who they are and it addresses things that impact their everyday experiences.”

There’s always an element of artistic expression too, Laing said, so that “kids aren’t just learning from their heads.”

The program initially took place at the Kingsley Association in the city’s Larimer neighborhood; during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it moved entirely online. As a whole, though, its popularity has gone up. 

“When we first did it, at Kingsley, maybe there were 15 or 20 kids, and now we’re at around 45,” Laing said. “It’s grown.”

The Academy’s new home is Anderson Manor, located at 1423 Liverpool St. and purchased by the Iota Phi Foundation in February of last year. Each week, sessions were held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost for the full eight-week program was $80 and scholarships are available.

A mansion built in 1830, Anderson Manor was the home of Col. James Anderson, a former military man and business and iron tycoon. Anderson owned a personal library of about 400 books and opened his collection for loan to neighborhood boys on Saturday afternoons. Andrew Carnegie was one of those boys, and he credits Anderson for influencing his taste in literature and likely inspiring his worldwide free, public library system.

Hart said Anderson Manor is particularly special to him because he grew up in the home that is catty-corner from it. 

“I passed that place probably a billion times. It was kind of off limits for us as kids,” said Hart.

“Growing up, getting my doctorate, purchasing one of the prized jewels of the community, and then opening it up to Black youth is very special. For an African American organization to own a mansion is a big deal. 

“We always tell the kids, ‘This is your space. Feel comfortable to be here.’”

More information about the Omega Dr. Carter G. Woodson Academy is available at shorturl.at/dxU34. Email iotaphifoundationchair@gmail.com for more information.