Summary(0:23) Attending public elementary schools in Brooklyn -- (0:37) Issue of busing in the 1960s -- (1:13) Asking for admittance to Midwood High School -- (1:47) Not being able to tell anyone about her high school transfer -- (4:02) Playing clarinet in the concert band, marching band, and orchestra -- (5:26) Being able to put aside the politics of the era within the walls of the school -- (6:12) Attending Simmons College in Boston -- (6:53) Attending Columbia University for graduate education in midwifery and maternal health -- (7:36) Marriage, retirement and returning to childhood home on Prospect Place -- (8:10) Parents' experience as the first black couple on the block in 1947 -- (9:10) Changes in the neighborhood -- (10:02) Nostalgia returning to Midwood High School for the reunion -- (10:23) Feeling prepared academically at each level of education -- (11:10) Never having any doubts about being college-bound -- (13:25) Advice for current high schoolers about appreciating the experience.
NoteAudio interview conducted on October 15, 2016, by Miguel Angeles at Midwood High School. Collected through Our Streets, Our Stories, an oral history project of Brooklyn Public Library. This project is a partnership with Services for Older Adults and the Brooklyn Collection.
SubjectNineteen sixties ; Nineteen forties ; Public schools ; Civil rights ; Clarinet ; Marching bands ; Orchestra ; Grover Cleveland High School (New York, N.Y.) ; Columbia University ; Midwifery ; Retirement ; Busing for school integration ; Social integration ; Nostalgia ; Class reunions ; Education ; Ivy League (Athletic conference)
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TitleOral history interview conducted with Roberta Holder on 2016 October 15.