"I was born at a crossroads: a crossroads in history, a crossroads in culture, and a geographical crossroads in North Houston County in East Texas. Born in 1945, Ruth J. Simmons grew up the twelfth child of sharecroppers. Her first home had no running water, no electricity to light the two crowded rooms, no books to read. Yet despite this-or, in her words, because of it-Simmons would become one of America's preeminent educators. The former president...

"The life of Lilly Ann Granderson, an enslaved teacher who strongly believed in the power of education and risked her life to teach others during slavery. Includes afterword and sources"--

Myrtilla Miner, the daughter of poor white farmers in Madison County, New York, was fueled by an unyielding feminist conviction. On December 3, 1851, the fiery educator and abolitionist opened the School for Colored Girls-- the only school in Washington, DC, dedicated to training African American students to be teachers. Milner fended off numerous attacks, including stonings, arson, and physical threats. The school would gradually gain national fame...