The Black Student Unions (BSU) of Harriton and LM hosted a vibrant celebration of Black History Month that brought students, staff, families and friends together in the for an evening of artistry, entertainment and education.
Celebrating Black History Month
Celebrating BHM 2025
LMSD schools will celebrate Black History Month throughout February with a range of educational and enrichment activities. While African American history is embedded in the year-long curriculum at all levels, this month offers an opportunity for deeper exploration of significant figures and events. Schools will feature displays showcasing art, literature, and key historical insights, reinforcing classroom learning. Additionally, various programs and activities will highlight the profound contributions of African Americans throughout history.
Since 1976, every American president has designated February as Black History Month and endorsed a specific theme. The theme for Black History Month this year is African Americans & Labor!
Throughout the month, we will share information, events and programs celebrating Black History Month from all 11 schools. Click the respective links below to see what's happening at your school and be sure to check back here as we continue to add updates all throughout February!
BHM News & Announcements
Chosen Dance Company aims to demonstrate that Hip-Hop dance is a true art form, accessible to audiences regardless of age, ethnicity or gender!
OKRA Dance Company led students through a captivating journey across centuries of American history, demonstrating how migration, culture and communication have influenced the evolution of theatrical dance.
Students, staff, family and friends gathered in the auditorium and Aces’ Atrium to participate in this entertaining and educational celebration of Black History!
After completing a research project on influential African American inventors, scientists and innovators, students in Elaine Johnson’s third grade class welcomed guests to their classroom for a special "Gallery Walk" as they put their hard work on display.
The first grade class at Belmont Hills recently capped off Black History Month with a special assembly celebrating the life and works of iconic African American scientists.
In culmination of a month-long celebration of Black History at the middle school level, LMSD welcomed celebrated author Torrey Maldonado Bala Cynwyd, Black Rock and Welsh Valley from February 20-22, 2024!
The AARI is a groundbreaking effort founded in 1990 by the Black Caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English to celebrate African American literature and authors, and to promote literacy as a significant aspect of Black History Month.
The Panthers welcomed Ugandan singer, songwriter and educator Ssuuna for an engaging and interactive assembly introducing students to the artistry of East African cultures through dance, music and storytelling.
As part of their Black History Month programming, students recently completed a research project combining elements from both their English/Language Arts (ELA) and Social Studies classes.
In the fourth and final installment of the video series, Director of School & Community Relations Amy Buckman speaks with Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Shawanna James-Coles about Belonging.
Bala Cynwyd recently welcomed Hip Hop Fundamentals – an award-winning group of certified teaching artists and professional breakdancers – for an action-packed and educational cultural enrichment assembly as part of the Knights' Black History Month programming.
Gladwyne's theme for Black History Month was Amazing Young Activists Making Change in the World as students had the opportunity to learn about African-American youths who are working to create positive change in their communities and the world-at-large!
As part of the Black History Month programming at Welsh Valley Middle School, seventh grade social studies students spent time researching influential African-American historical figures before commemorating each of them in a giant, fourteen-foot-long mosaic!
Penn Valley recently welcomed Hip Hop Fundamentals for a fun-filled and engaging cultural enrichment assembly as part of the school's Black History Month programming!
Background Info
From the Association for the Study of African-American Life & History (ASALH)
When Carter G. Woodson established "Negro History Week" in 1926, he realized the importance of providing a theme to focus the attention of the public. The intention has never been to dictate or limit the exploration of the Black experience, but to bring to the public’s attention important developments that merit emphasis.
For those interested in the study of identity and ideology, an exploration of ASALH’s Black History themes is itself instructive. Over the years, the themes reflect changes in how people of African descent in the United States have viewed themselves, the influence of social movements on racial ideologies, and the aspirations of the black community.
The changes notwithstanding, the list reveals an overarching continuity in ASALH - dedication to exploring historical issues of importance to people of African descent and race relations in America.
Learn more about the ASALH and the origins of Black History Month here!
African Americans & Labor
The 2025 Black History Month theme, African Americans and Labor, focuses on the various and profound ways that work and working of all kinds – free and unfree, skilled, and unskilled, vocational and voluntary – intersect with the collective experiences of Black people. Indeed, work is at the very center of much of Black history and culture. Be it the traditional agricultural labor of enslaved Africans that fed Low Country colonies, debates among Black educators on the importance of vocational training, self-help strategies and entrepreneurship in Black communities, or organized labor’s role in fighting both economic and social injustice, Black people’s work has been transformational throughout the U.S., Africa, and the Diaspora. The 2025 Black History Month theme, “African Americans and Labor,” sets out to highlight and celebrate the potent impact of this work.
Considering Black people’s work through the widest perspectives provides versatile and insightful platforms for examining Black life and culture through time and space. In this instance, the notion of work constitutes compensated labor in factories, the military, government agencies, office buildings, public service, and private homes. But it also includes the community building of social justice activists, voluntary workers serving others, and institution building in churches, community groups, and social clubs and organizations. In each of these instances, the work Black people do and have done have been instrumental in shaping the lives, cultures, and histories of Black people and the societies in which they live. Understanding Black labor and its impact in all these multivariate settings is integral to understanding Black people and their histories, lives, and cultures.