Dr. Anna Julia Cooper, 1858-1964: Teacher, Scholar, and Timeless Womanist.

Models of educational excellence abound throughout Black educational history. However, less attention is typically given to the lives and contributions of Black women educational pioneers and leaders. This study is an educational biography of one such individual, Dr. Anna Julia Cooper, 1858-1964, that examines her life as a social activist-educator and early model for Black feminist theory. This study reveals her unique voice, accomplishments, and her skillful navigation of multicontextual realities and contested terrains within educational settings. Cooper's legacy demonstrates her abilities as a public intellectual and a socially committed Black woman during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Studying the history of Black educational leadership adds to our understanding of the rich cultural heritage of Black educational struggle and challenges the norms of contemporary educational settings for African Americans (Bullock, 1970). William Watkins (2001) noted, "The Negro question is at the very heart of American history and American educational history" (p. 6). The complexity of how and why Blacks should be educated is deeply embedded politically, ideologically, and economically in the early decades of the Republic, and significant questions of educational access and equity persist into the twenty-first century. When the question of gender is combined with the issue of race, deeper complexities emerge. Dr. Anna Julia Cooper modeled excellence as an educator and educational administrator, a vocal advocate for Black women's rights, public intellectual, social activist and writer. Teacher, scholar, poet, community activist, and outspoken Black educational leader, Cooper's insightful and critical analysis of race, gender, and socioeconomic class dynamics established a cornerstone for the contemporary theories on Black feminism (womanism) and the role of education in the uplift of the Black community (Alexander, 1995; Baker-Fletcher, 1992-1993: Burrow, 1998; Collins, 2000). As a venerated public school educator in the District of Columbia from 1887 until 1930, and from 1930 through the early 1940s as the president of the community-based adult educational center known as Frelinghuysen University, Cooper lived what bell hooks called "engaged pedagogy" (hooks, 1994). "Engaged pedagogy," stated hooks, "emphasizes well-being. That means that teachers must be actively committed to a process of self-actualization that promotes their own well-being if they are to teach in a manner that empowers students" (hooks, 1994, p. 15). Within the historiography of American Black education, Cooper stands as a shining example of an educator holistically dedicated to her community and committed to helping others "reach their highest potential" (Siddle-Walker, 1996). Her legacy continues as a model for Black women's voice and space and the uplift of the Black community. In writing a response to a 1930s survey on Negro college graduates, Cooper plainly declared her vocation as "The education of neglected people" (Anna Julia Cooper Papers, Box 23-1, Folder 1, Moorland-Springarn Research Center, Howard University). In this way, the work of Paulo Freire (1993) connects with Cooper's pedagogy and practice. As a former slave and member of two oppressed groups-Blacks and females-Cooper represented a strong analytic voice for Iiberatory outcomes. This study draws attention to her commitment to social justice. Through the self-actualization that emerged from self-knowledge, pride and love of family, a commitment to excellence and achievement, and a strong spirituality based on the social gospel of Jesus, Cooper accepted the uplift ideology that permeated her youth, and pursued a compassionate practice that challenged the oppressive nature of racism and sexism in the U.S. She worked to free others from illiteracy and lack of knowledge, and expanded opportunities for members of the Black community. Cooper pursued education and service to others throughout her life. …