At the Alabama History Coalition, based in Birmingham, Alabama, we are dedicated to ensuring that the legacy of civil rights history remains alive and relevant. Through networking and peer support, tailored resources, and strategic guidance, we empower educators to continue teaching civil rights history with integrity and accuracy, following recognized best practices.

Through community-wide engagement, we foster a deeper understanding of our shared past and its implications for the present and the future.

The Alabama History Coalition aims to motivate Birmingham-area schools to prioritize the teaching of Alabama’s civil rights history so that our students go out into the world with full knowledge of the world around them. We want them to be curious, compassionate, and empathetic as they mature into productive and influential citizens who will create a brighter future for Birmingham.

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The Birmingham area needs more civil rights history.

Our research with local stakeholders has confirmed what we suspected: Today’s students and teachers tell us that in the very region where civil rights history was made, their schools give scant attention to Birmingham’s iconic role in bringing about change at the national level.

Why does this matter?

The greater Birmingham area remains a place of deep inequities – in housing, education, health, environment, and justice. For communities throughout Jefferson County to experience positive social change, we need people here to grow up knowing the relevant history.

Local civil rights hero Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth has said it best: “If you don’t tell it like it was, it can never be as it ought to be.”

We want people to understand our shared history and how we got here. We want our future voters and leaders to know, for example:

• The ways that historic housing discrimination led to a city where some of today’s neighborhoods are still disproportionately exposed to toxic air and soil, leading to poor health outcomes.
• That the sheer number of school districts in Jefferson County (13!), and today’s disparities in resources among the districts is, in part, the legacy of a historic desire to maintain segregated schools.
• That Birmingham’s local hero, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, stands out among the nation’s most influential leaders in claiming and activating human rights, locally and globally
• That the ongoing activism of Birmingham’s Black community and allies helped bring about the end of Jim Crow segregation – not only in Birmingham, but throughout the country, leading to the Civil Rights Act of 1964!

We picture a thriving Greater Birmingham area as our citizens learn about – and then move beyond – its racial history.

As each new generation graduates from local schools, we wish that they enter adulthood informed about this history and its relevance to modern-day Jefferson County.

We are demonstrating that improving the teaching of civil rights history is possible, especially if we engage people throughout the whole “system” – that is, key stakeholders including: teachers, school principals and other administrators, students, parents, nonprofit staff, museum staff, university specialists, the media, businesses, foundations, and everyday citizens and taxpayers.

Pulling together, we are beginning to see improvements in how this history is taught throughout Birmingham-area schools.

We have been busy seeking out successes as we pilot new lesson plans and find bright spots where educators are already committed to making a priority of teaching local civil rights history across the curriculum.

The Alabama History Coalition, a Birmingham, Alabama-based movement, is already making a difference:

• We help a growing number of educators and supporters stay connected, discussing ideas and sharing information to keep the Coalition’s goal front and center
• Our School Liaisons visit schools and listen to school principals and other educators to gain an understanding of their priorities and interests — and link them with organizations that offer lesson ideas, ready-to-go classroom materials, professional development workshops, field trips, speakers, and primary source materials
• Our “Black History, All Year” series highlights stories about fascinating Alabamians whose contributions to civil rights deserve more attention
• The Coalition played an active role in helping to shape the 2024 Alabama Course of Study: Social Studies, the revised state standards for teaching social studies in the state’s K-12 schools, as accepted unanimously by the Alabama State Board of Education in December 2024. The new standards, HERE, which officially go into effect in Fall 2026, are already being implemented in some area school districts.
• We provide timely and valuable guidance and support to educators navigating the challenges posed by new legislation
• We gather insights into ways to build an openness to teaching honest history, identifying the most effective leverage points for lasting, large-scale change
• We identify internal champions who can share their enthusiasm for teaching this history, fostering a larger, more active coalition
• We continue to test novel ways for teachers to use primary source materials on civil rights in subjects across the school curriculum and throughout the school year
• We assess how things are going, recognizing challenges and opportunities, and nimbly refining our work in response to those feedback loops

How to join the Coalition: Click here to begin receiving occasional emails.

Here’s why!

If you’re a K-12 teacher, of any subject or grade level:

• Find ready-to-use lessons and curriculum ideas, many designed to work beyond social studies classes
• Find primary sources that are linked to teaching specific state standards
• Learn about local resources and opportunities for your students
• Meet peers who share your enthusiasm for teaching local history and gain confidence in teaching this material
• Share what has worked for you!

If you’re a school principal, curriculum specialist, librarian, or other school admin/staff:

• Learn about the tools and ideas you can put to use right now to make your school a champion of teaching this history – across the school building and throughout the year
• Join forces with other educators across the county to promote the prioritizing of this history, share what you’ve implemented, and navigate opposition efforts

If you’re a student, parent, or taxpayer:

• Find opportunities to tell educators and policy makers that you are in favor of schools’ efforts to ensure our students know about the people, actions, and events that made Birmingham the epicenter of civil rights history – and how that can lead to a stronger Jefferson County

If you’re a provider of classroom materials and educational experiences:

• Learn from our close relationships with school leaders how your organization can tailor your materials and services to educators’ and students’ needs and interests
• Through our growing networks, increase schools’ use of your products: field trips, oral histories, curricula and lesson plans, videos, plays, primary source materials, or professional development opportunities
• Learn how you can serve as a Co-sponsor of the Alabama History Coalition

If you’re a donor or funder:

• Actively follow the growth of this movement
• Discover ways you may support the innovative work underway to counter current assaults on education from people instilling fear that learning comprehensive history may make students “feel uncomfortable”

Join the Coalition’s mailing list by clicking here.

How YOU can support the Alabma History Coalition as we motivate Birmingham-area schools to prioritize the teaching of Alabama’s civil rights history:

• Individuals: Join the Coalition and encourage others to do the same. Share this link or send us your email (at info@alabamahistorycoalition.org). Numbers make a difference!
• Nonprofit groups, universities, museums, businesses, and community organizations: Contact us to learn how to be recognized as a Co-Sponsor of the Coalition for True History
• Donors: Join existing sponsors and help grow support for this initiative

Help the Coalition shine a light on the bright spots

Our early research and activities have uncovered dozens of K-12 educators throughout the Birmingham area who are committed to teaching local civil rights history in an clear-sighted and comprehensive way.

Already we see an increase in interest and actions as the Coalition gathers more folks who want to prioritize this history and wish to help grow the network and get people involved.

Early signs of success are encouraging. We invite you to join with us to grow and expand the Alabama History Coalition for a brighter future for Birmingham.

Current Co-Sponsors of the Alabama History Coalition

Interested in becoming a Co-Sponsor?
Contact Ann Jimerson at info@alabamahistorycoalition.org

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