TVA Retiree

Listening to a divine message

In a poor section of Corpus Christi, Texas, in the 1960s, students at the segregated Solomon Coles school had a choice – they could stay or they could leave their school and become pioneers for desegregation. The stories of many students who left the nation’s segregated schools have been documented; now a TVA retiree is giving voice to some who chose to stay.

Brenda Glasgow of Knoxville tells their story in her recently published book, Why She Stayed At An African American School, Solomon Coles, During Desegregation. The book chronicles the extraordinary measures by the school’s teachers and administrators to help students maintain rich school traditions and improve their academic opportunities.

“The culture and traditions of the African-American schools were essentially threatened, from an economic standpoint,” Glasgow says. “The resources were not there, so teachers stepped in to maintain the cultural and spiritual strength, while ensuring tough standards were applied for academics.”

It’s a relevant story even today, she says, as many predominantly African-American schools still suffer from lack of money and need assistance.

Glasgow says her teachers at Solomon Coles dispensed life lessons and often became personally invested in their students.

“They took on a more parental role and intervened even when the matter was off the school grounds, whenever they saw a need,” she says. “They knew early on that it takes a village to raise a child.”

Glasgow says the idea for the book came as a “divine message” about 10 years ago as she considered post-retirement options to use the many skills she had acquired at TVA, including having served a year-long assignment as editor of Inside TVA. She retired in 2004 from the Human Resource Information Systems group. She worked for TVA for 34 years.

She says she has thoroughly enjoyed her “book tour,” holding signings in Atlanta, Nashville and Knoxville, with more to be scheduled. Her most exciting was in her home of Corpus Christi, where she was invited as keynote speaker for the Solomon Coles reunion.

Feedback from all circles has been uplifting, says Glasgow. “Mrs. Hillmon, one of the teachers featured in the book, called after she’d read it. She said to me, ‘I always wondered why God put me on this earth. After reading this book, now I know.’”

The book is available at Carpe Librum Booksellers in Knoxville and at www.brendasbooksonline.com.

(written by Carolyn Minter, INSIDE TVA, OCTOBER 2009)