This document describes an interdisciplinary studies program called "Against All Odds: The Black Experience" that explored how Black communities succeeded despite adversity. The quarter-long program used lectures, films, guest speakers and collaborative projects to examine themes of resilience. Students analyzed texts and media about the mis-education of Black people and their journey from victims to victors. They demonstrated their learning through reflective journals, papers and a final performance synthesizing their experience in the program.

1. Against All Odds: The Black
Experience
Spring 2014
Description
Faculty: Kabby Mitchell MFA; W. Joye Hardiman Ph.D.
Against All Odds: The Black Experience was an one quarter inquiry–based
integrative studies program that explored the following questions - How did
Black women, men, families and communities from diverse times and stations
succeed against all odds? How did they consistently move from "victims" to
victors? Where did they find the insurmountable courage to deconstruct and
reconstruct their lives over and over again?
This Resiliency Studies program had a variety of learning modalities, including
lectures, films, field studies, guest speakers, workshops, seminars, and
research and performance groups. Students were given the opportunity to
collect data and demonstrate their acquired knowledge, skills and insights
about the mis-education/re-education process through a quarter-long reflective
journal; weekly seminar and synthesis papers; a mid-quarter character,
content, contextual research project; an end-of-quarter synthesis paper; and
an end-of-quarter collaborative performance about their journey from mis-
education to education, and those factors that allow one to retain their
humanity in spite of long-term systemic dehumanizing attempts.
Texts included: Woodson, Carter G and Willie Lynch, Mis-Education of the
Negro and The Willie Lynch Letter; Arunga, Marcia Tate, The Stolen Ones
And How They Were Missed; Douglass, Frederick, Narrative of the Life of
Frederick Douglass, an American Slave; Wilkerson, Isabel, The Warmth of
Other Suns; Davis, Ossie and Ruby Dee, In This Life Together.
Films included: The Danger of the Single Story; The Black List; Hidden Colors;
Sankofa; Slave Narratives; Passages; Beautiful/Ugly; Django Unchained; The
Yard People; A Soul Come Home; Mama Flora’s Family; the Emmett Till Story;
42 - The Jackie Robinson Story; Revelations; Carmen & Geoffrey.

2. Guest speakers included Olisa Enrico, actor and movement coach; Professor
Marcia Tate Arunga, author of The Stolen Ones; Liza Rogas, Librarian and
Civil Rights scholar; Dr. Maxine Mimms, founder of TESC-Tacoma; Reginald
Kwame Gillins Jr., engineer; Wyking Garrett, community activist; Khalfani
Mwamba, linguist; Owuor Arunga, musician.
Evaluation
Written by: Kabby Mitchell, MFA
Andrew Butac met all program learning objectives. He enhanced his
appreciation and comprehension of those elements in the Black experience
that result in resiliency and indigestibility. He increased his ability to recognize
the master narrative, the residual of the seasoning process and the multiple
dimensions of the Black experience. He heightened his awareness of the role
that the educational process and media images play in promoting mis-
education and negative self-imaging and those conscientious intentions that
nurture re-education, efficacy and ally ship. He enhanced his ability to
collaboratively conceptualize, create and produce reflexive autobiographical
and biographical performances and apply the lessons learned and the wisdom
earned from the class to his life.
Andrew's class preparation, attendance, participation was exemplary; his work
clearly demonstrated that he had an excellent command of the information
covered and the ability to think critically, verbalize ideas and plan strategies for
problem solving. He worked collaboratively to explore ideas and concepts and
present them to his peers.
Andrew is a conscientious co-learner who worked extremely hard to
comprehend the Black experience; this was evident not only all of his seminar
passes, but in how he was able to re-educate himself and do a comparative
analysis about his own culture.
In his final collaborative performance, he managed to come out of his comfort
zone and illustrate his learning of mis-education to re-education in his short
and eloquent soliloquy.

3. Suggested Course Equivalencies
Credits attempted: 16
Credits Subject
6 Resiliency Studies
6 The Global Black Experience
4 Collaborative Presentations
16
16 Total