Source: Afro Newspaper/Gado / Getty
In 1909, educator, religious leader and civil rights activist Nannie Helen Burroughs established the National Training School for Women and girls with the help of the National Baptist Convention. The purpose of this school was to educate and train poor, working African American women. Initially operating out of a small farm house, they moved to a larger building names Trades Hall in 1928. In 1900, she helped to organize the Women’s Convention, an auxilliary of the National Baptist Convention. Burroughs was an advocate for African Americans especially African American women. She believed women should have access to a good education and job training. She believed white and black women should work together for the right to vote. In 1964, her school was renamed after her, Nannie Helen Burroughs School.
The defiant life of Nannie Helen Burroughs inspires me as an educator and full-time entrepreneur. She bucked against the historical norms for women at that time. She sought out her own education and made it a priority to educate others. She’s the epitome of the sayings “Each one, teach one” and “Pay it forward”. When God blesses you, be sure to reach out and bless someone else!
