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In the early years of the 20th century, a black fraternity started celebrating black history one day of the year.
Carter G. Woodson founded "Negro History Week" in 1926, when he told the black fraternity he could do it for them and could do it better, said Monroe H. Little Jr., Indiana University - Purdue University of Indianapolis associate professor of history and director of African-American studies. Then, only black schools, churches and YMCAs around the country observed the special week.
"It was really just a week where people celebrated Lincoln's birthday," said Little. "Events were similar to what they have today."
Little said the Journal of Negro History, founded in 1916, kept annual reports of people who were responsible for activities in specific areas and what they did.
"They would also address the problems they had incorporating (black studies) into the schools," Little said.
The week-long celebration of the impact of blacks on the United States became Black History Month in 1976. It's now held every February and has grown to include seminars, dances, music, rallies and many other activities.
"A lot of it still deals with contributions of African-Americans to American society," Little said. "The whole event has become much more mainstream."
Woodson was born in 1875 to a poor family, but he was self-educated, graduated from college and received a doctorate from Harvard University in 1912.
Negro History Week gained white political support in the 1940s.
Today, Black History Month is celebrated in many areas across the United States. Schools may dedicate the month to teaching their students about such notable black historical figures as Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Woodson, among many others.
There is also a plethora of other notable black figures in history who do not get discussed, Little said. One such person is J. Ernest Wilkins.
Wilkins, Little said, was born in Indianapolis and graduated from the University of Chicago with a bachelor's degree in science at age 16 or 19, Little said.
"They referred to him as the Negro genius," he said.
Wilkins went on to work on the Manhattan Project that developed the nuclear bomb during World War II. He then owned his own nuclear reactor consulting firm when nuclear power was popular.
"On a personal note, one of the things that concerns me is the tendency for people to see anything with black or African on it as being history," Little said.
He said some programs and seminars have little emphasis on actual black history. He said more and more programs feature law professors, psychologists, poets and literary critics.
"The number of people who are actually black historians are getting passed over," Little said.
School corporations in Kosciusko County do not have any corporation-wide plans to celebrate Black History Month. Superintendents of Wawasee, Warsaw, Whitko and Tippecanoe Valley school corporations said programs were left up to individual buildings or teachers.
Warsaw Superintendent Dr. Lee Harman said, "On a building basis, there are various programs which take place to address the diversity issue."
Dr. Karen Boling, Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. superintendent, said, "We are not planning a special program corporation- wide, but the individual buildings may plan something."
At the schools in Whitko School Corp., superintendent Dr. Bill Worl said nothing was planned corporation-wide this year. Any activities are left up to individual schools. Next year, he said, the corporation will have a Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
"We have identified on the calendar Martin Luther King Jr. day as a special day next year," Worl said.
Wawasee School Corp. superintendent Mark Stock said that while the corporation does not have anything specifically planned, many students have been involved in the celebration in the community.
"What we've done here is having some of our students address some of the issues in the community," he said.
Members of the Amy VanLaningham Society attended the Martin Luther King Jr. luncheon in January. They performed a skit portraying important events during the early days of the civil rights movement.
AVS also held Wawasee Cares during the week of Nov. 14 with a walk through each of the three towns comprising Wawasee School Corp. At the end of the march, they held a kickoff and rally at Wawasee High School. A community church service was held Nov. 18 at the Oakwood Spiritual Center.
Stock said each teacher at the schools may plan something during the month. The school corporation, he said, is also working to integrate black history more into its curriculum.
"It's pretty clear to our students here," he said, "that they're going to go on to jobs and colleges where they will see a lot of diversity."
Herman Hudson, director of minority achievers program and coordinator of minority student recruitment at Indiana University, said, "The community has to recognize some other things. Not only do you foresee more minority students, but they also have parents."
Hudson said the community needs to embrace their minorities, and not just in the classroom. The community needs to be made more aware of minority issues and not just during Black History Month.
"Certainly, there is a need to educate the whole community on diversity," he said.
