Each year beginning on February 1, nationwide events honor the history and contributions of African Americans. The theme for Black History Month in 2017 is "The Crisis in Black Education". While the needs of black urban youth in public schools are especially critical in closing the achievement gap, the needs for equity and access to rigor is equally important in high achieving schools as well.

Schools serve as pipelines to the future for all students. Therefore, education "should be considered one of the most important goals in America’s past, present, and future."

The following procalmation was approved by the HCPSS BOE on January 12, 2017.

BOARD OF EDUCATION OF HOWARD COUNTY
PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING FEBRUARY 2017 AS AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH
WHEREAS, the theme for National African American History Month 2017 is: “The Crisis in Black Education;” and
WHEREAS, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent civil disobedience; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Education of Howard County in 2012 issued a proclamation to repudiate the delayin the desegregation of Howard County Public School System, which was not fully achieved until 1965; and
WHEREAS, the Howard County Public School System is committed to providing every child, regardless ofrace, ethnicity, and social or economic demographic, with full access to educational opportunity; and
WHEREAS, the Howard County Public School System recognizes the importance of educating students about the struggles for equality that are part of America’s history so that this generation, and those that follow, do not take our hard-earned freedoms for granted; and
WHEREAS, the Board of Education of the Howard County Public School System is a proud member of the National School Boards Association Council of Urban Boards of Education (NSBA CUBE), and actively supports it goals; and
WHEREAS, the Howard County Public School System partners with many civic and educational organizations to promote the academic achievement of students from elementary to high school, including The Council of Elders of the Black Community of Howard County (TCOE), the African American Community Roundtable (AACR), National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Continentals, Inc., Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.;
THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED that the Board of Education hereby designates February 2017 asAfrican American History Month in the Howard County Public School System; and
BE IT FURTHER PROCLAIMED that this document serves to reinforce our commitment to recognizing the significant contributions of African Americans and to ensure that all children see themselves in the Howard County Public School System’s curriculum.