1. Mendez and Brown ~
Youth Picture Pathways
to Graduation
Canton, Mississippi Youth Photojournal, 2012
Intercultural Development Research Association
with support from Critical Exposure
funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and
the IDRA South Central Collaborative for Equity

2. With the civil rights promises of Mendez vs.
Westminster and Brown vs. Board of
Education as a backdrop, a group of Canton
high school students took up 35 millimeter
cameras to reflect on barriers and
opportunities for building pathways to high
school graduation and college access in
Canton, Mississippi.

3. Framework for College Access & Success
Many of the students images and reflections speak to the
need to expand pathways around a seven-part framework*
• Affordability
• Preparing students
• College access
• Institutional
persistence
• Institutional resources
• Graduation
• Graduate and
professional studies
InterAction Framework, IDRA 2005

4. These are excerpts of their
stories and photographs.

5. Affordability
Students emphasized that affordability of higher education and transportation to
and from college were make-or-break issues in their decision about whether or
not to enroll. To be accessible, college has to be affordable.

6. Low Funds
Kevarious Hamlin, 12th
Grade
“I’ve been saving but still not enough money for college. I need some help, any
positive financial help for my brother and I who both want to go to college.”

7. Financial Problems
Tonisha Brown, 11th
Grade
“My family doesn’t have enough money to put any of my
family members in college.”

8. No Transportation
Tatyana Dixon, 9th
Grade
“Some parents try to fix up a car for their
children to drive to college but never

9. Financial
Keairra Starks, 11th
Grade
“As you know, college is expensive. I will have
to do this if I choose to go to college.”

10. Hard Times
William Kittrell, 9th
Grade
“It would be hard trying to find transportation to
school if my car or my parents’ car is always
broken down and needs repair.”

11. Denise Cortez, 9th
Grade

12. No Go
Kevarious Hamlin, 12th
Grade
“I pass this truck on a regular basis at this body shop and wonder if the owner cannot afford or
chooses to not afford to get this truck fixed. Either way, it makes me think about the fact that I
do not have dependable transportation to and from school yet (and I am a senior).”

13. Financial Problems
Tecorche Bates, 11th
Grade
“Financial problems are a big reason one cannot go to college. Tuitions, loans, books and other
college needs have to be paid for, even if it’s by picking up cans to save money.”

14. Even if I Had a Car, I Wouldn’t Be Able to Afford the Gas
William Kittrell, 9th
Grade
“The price of gas is getting so high that just having enough money to
pay for gas going to and coming from school would be hard.”

15. Kijana Clay, 9th
Grade

16. Transportation
Isabel Moreno, 9th
Grade
“I’m scared I will have no way
to get to college.”

17. More Money than Ever Before
Tyrick Manning, 11th
Grade
“At the age of 18, I can work for Nissan Motor Company, where most jobs pay
over $10/hour. Having a good paying job without a degree can stop me from
going to college to make a better salary with benefits.”

18. Untitled
Ariel Coley, 11th
Grade
“Some people may have transportation, but if
my brother and I decide to go to two different
schools, it might be hard to transport all of our
stuff in this one family vehicle.”

19. Untitled
Ariel Coley, 11th
Grade
“Tuition for college is very high, and money is low! We need more jobs
in Canton that could help us start saving money for school.”

20. Preparing Students
Students described the need for preparation,
information and support of the kind that not only
provides academic readiness for college courses
but also helps in managing weighty decisions and
building bridges between home and college life.
They raised questions not only about being
prepared but also about fitting in, being valued,
feeling welcome and feeling safe.

21. Is this For Me?
Aliyah King, 11th
Grade
“I’ve always dreamed about attending a college in a
big city. But having grown up in a small town, will it
be too overwhelming?”

22. Even if I Had It
Jamesha Brown
“If all my other problems were solved,
I would still be confused about what college to
attend. We could use a class that just prepares us for
college and helps narrow our choices for our major.”

23. Gone
Aliyah King, 11th
Grade
“Starting college will be exciting, but all I can
think about is what I’m leaving behind: family,
friends, HOME!”

24. Pandemonium
Alexis Jackson, 10th
Grade
“This is a mixed feeling of being caged and confused. Not wanting to
leave my family is getting to me but experiencing college is something
I want to adventure. Which way should I look? Should I go to a college
closer to home, one that doesn’t involve my career?”

25. Untitled
Aliyah King
“Fear of competition is something I struggle with when thinking
about college. Wanting to pursue a career in the medical field, I
have to study now so I can know when the time comes. But
there's always someone who's more knowledgeable than I am.
The fire in this picture represents a challenge. So, bring it on!”

26. It’s Too Much
Alexis Jackson, 10th
Grade
“It all feels as if I’m getting overweighed with decisions of the college life. This photo is
important! It should persuade others to start deciding early.”

27. Not Fitting In
Tamerial Lewis, 11th
Grade
“This is a picture of a boy standing to himself… I feel like when I
leave to go to college I may not fit in with the other students.”

28. Not Fitting In
Keairra Starks, 11th
Grade
“Me not fitting in makes me not want to go to college. There will be
times I would want to be able to do things but me not fitting in
makes me feel unwanted.”

29. Why is it So Hard for Me to Choose a College?
Tonisha Brown, 11th
Grade
“It is hard for me because I don’t know if I want to go to a two-year
or a four-year or a university or a community college.”

30. Fights
Isabel Moreno, 9th
Grade
“I’m scared there will be too many “fights.

31. Distractions
Jamesha Brown, 11th
Grade
“If I am easily distracted by friends or other things now, this could stop me from going to
college. Teens need positive things to challenge and nurture our minds in Canton.”

32. Down, Dark and Low
Alexis Jackson, 10th
Grade
“Is everything black bad? I think [it’s] a beautiful color, but
what will others think?”

33. Safety
Tonisha Brown, 11th
Grade
“Safety is a big part of me not going to college, because I would
like to feel safe at a place where I can get my education.”

34. Restroom
Isabel Moreno, 9th
Grade
“In college you never know how the
restrooms are, if they are clean or not.”

35. Feeling Alone
Jamesha Brown, 11th
Grade
“Beginning college, I won’t know a lot of people and might feel alone at certain
times. (The door adds to the feeling that no one is there to support me.)”

36. Untitled
Aliyah King, 11th
Grade
“Coming of age in Small Town, Miss., makes you want to break
away. When the time approaches, will I have my ‘Red Badge
of Courage’ or will this be the only red I see.”

37. College Access
Students wondered if college would be
accessible and described the need for greater
preparation for the workload and admissions.
Admissions policies need to use multiple
criteria for admissions.

38. An Overload of Work
Tamerial Lewis, 11th
Grade
“This is a picture of homework… too much work stresses me out.”

39. Not Smart Enough
Andreauna Taylor, 11th
Grade
“I might not know enough knowledge to get accepted in
college.”

40. Exams
Kevarious Hamlin, 12th
Grade
“Our teachers always remind us about tests, and all we hear
is surrounded around tests. I am not a good test taker, and
this makes me nervous about going to college.”

41. Low Self-esteem
Tatyana Dixon, 9th
Grade
“Sometimes I doubt myself and am scared about going to college.”

42. Too Much Work
Isabel Moreno, 9th
Grade
“I’m scared there will be too much work
in college.”

43. Institutional Persistence
Students described concerns that parenting and responsibilities for family could keep
them from attending college. They talked about concerns the threat that police
harassment, crime, getting a juvenile record; negative peer pressure; or health issues
could stop them from enrolling and being accepted, pointing to the need peer and
adult support, counseling and advising, and institutions for higher education that are
designed to accommodate students with multiple commitments.

44. Family Matter
Nakeki Austin, 11th
Grade
This is a picture that sets out from all the others the fear of leaving my blind nephew behind
because my sister is sick and I actually take care of him and he also has heart problems
and it fears me to leave him because he could barely talk and I trust no one else with him.

45. Parenting
Andreauna Taylor, 11th
Grade
It might be hard for me to leave my son.

46. Don’t Want to Leave
Keairra Starks, 11th
Grade
Learning is very serious these days. If I leave, learning would not be
as important to my brother as it was when I was with him.

47. Health Problems
Tecorche Bates, 11th
Grade
“When dealing with a health problem, it can be difficult balancing your college schedule, health
schedule, and spare time schedule. If I go to an out of state college, it will be hard to find
another hospital to care for my medical problem like my current hospital.”

48. Finance Problems
Andreauna Taylor, 11th
Grade
“I might not be able to balance my money out well enough to
take care of my child and go to college.”

49. Falling Prey to the Streets
Tyrick Manning, 11th
Grade
“Getting a felony or having a criminal background can stop me from going to college.”

50. Jail/Police Harassment
Kevarious Hamil, 12th
Grade
“I know that if I commit certain crimes that this could hinder me from going to college.”

51. Peer Pressure
Jamesha Brown, 11th
Grade
“Our peers can pressure us into doing things that can stop us from getting into college.”

52. Blurry Visions
Alexis Jackson, 10th
Grade
“This is caused by the sideliners that aren’t there to support
me, just there to make fun of me and down me. The ones who
was there at one point of the time and gone the next minute.”

53. "There is no more important thing to be doing on a
Saturday than hearing the perspectives of youth
about education" – Dr. William Truly, Mayor
Pictured here with participating Canton High School students
and their teacher, Ms. Firenza Anderson.

54. Special thanks to the following people
for helping to coordinate the project
project in Canton, Mississippi
Ms. Firenza Anderson
Ms. Carina Lindsey
Mr. John E. Fleming
Ms. Shirley Sanders

55. Participating Students
• Arabia Carr
• Octavius White
• Aliyah King
• Nakeki Austin
• Keairra Starks
• Denise Cortez
• Alexis Jackson
• Kijana Clay
• Tyrick Manning
• William Kittrell
• Andreauna Taylor
• Isabel Moreno
• Tonisha Brown
• Tecorche Bates
• Tamerial Lewis
• Tatyana Dixon
• Jamesha Brown
• Felicia Ferminick
• Kevarious Hamlin
• Ariel Coley

56. This project, led by IDRA in collaboration with
the non-profit Critical Exposure, Canton Public
School District and South Liberty Baptist Church,
with funding from the Charles Stewart Mott
Foundation and the IDRA South Central
Collaborative for Equity, builds on a framework
for community blueprint meetings that engage
youth, community, family and school leaders in
community-based dialogues and planning to
improve public education.
To learn more, visit www.idra.org

57. Intercultural Development Research AssociationIntercultural Development Research Association
Dr. María “Cuca” Robledo Montecel, President & CEO
5815 Callaghan Road, Suite 101
San Antonio, Texas 78228
210-444-1710 • contact@idra.org
www.www.idraidra.org.org
Ensuring that educational opportunity and success
for all students are guaranteed
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