Shoulders to Stand On

Dr. Marlon James ’08 recalls when thoughts of achieving a doctoral degree seemed like an elusive pipe dream. “It was a life-altering event for me to pursue a Ph.D.,” said the Texas A&M University urban education professor.  “No one in my family had acquired that type of education or even thought to attempt it. I have a deep appreciation for two amazing scholars who put me on this path and changed my life.”

The duo of which he speaks, Professors Emeriti Pat Larke and Norvella Carter, founded the specialty fields of multicultural and urban education in the Department of Teaching, Learning & Culture in Texas A&M’s College of Education and Human Development. The “Mother Scholars,” as their former students refer to them, have produced a voluminous number of teachers and professors across the world who are dedicated to equity in education. 

Retired since 2017, their legacy continues through the college’s Carter-Larke Lecture Series held yearly during Black History Month. A fundraising campaign is underway to raise a minimum of $100,000 to permanently endow the event, which focuses on how to improve educational opportunities for underrepresented communities. Such an endowment could enable a yearlong lecture series, allowing prolonged conversation about the issue.

Parallel Paths

A revelation about her mother cemented Carter’s interest in urban education. Though valedictorian of her eighth-grade class, her mother couldn’t further pursue her education since there were no high schools in Mississippi that accepted African American students at the time. “That realization was gripping for me,” Carter said.

Larke too became interested in multicultural education after researching inequities like these in graduate school. “That was life-changing,” she said.

The two women eventually merged at Texas A&M, where they researched, published and recruited, drawing in faculty and students of color.

“They were transformational faculty members at Texas A&M, just amazing women and mentors,” said Dr. Diana Wandix-White ’19, who was recruited to the graduate program by Carter. Wandix-White co-hosts the annual Celebration of Black Culture and Education Event, during which the Carter-Larke Lecture Series takes place. The event drew 50 people in 2017 and has grown to an audience of 300 with noted scholars lecturing on a myriad of topics about inequities in education and strategies to correct them.

Past highlights include Prairie View A&M Professor Fred Bonner’s lecture, “Resilient, Black and Brilliant,” that focused on identifying gifted African American students and the biases that overlook them for such school programs. Last year’s lecturer, University of Texas Professor Keffrelyn Brown, spoke about the need for accurate depictions of African American history in school curriculums.

“The lecture series is all about honoring the legacies of Dr. Carter and Dr. Larke and about honoring others who have made an impact on Black education. It’s allowed us to have conversations across the campus,” said Wandix-White. The event culminates with two recipients receiving a Carter-Larke Legacy Award for research and leadership contributions in the field.

Lasting Legacy

Larke was Aggieland’s first African American female to complete the entire tenure process from rank of lecturer to full professor. She developed courses on multicultural education that broadened to encompass a doctoral-level curriculum and worked with school districts and higher education institutions to integrate systemic change toward equity in the nation’s classrooms. The grandmother to six girls spent her later years at Texas A&M researching African American females and academics, due to a dearth of information on the subject.

“When you hear stories about what’s going on in schools, you have to do the work,” Larke said. “That was the great thing about Texas A&M. I was allowed to do all that research that was so important.”

Carter focused on school districts, locally and globally, traveling abroad with graduate students to study urban school systems and their practices. Nicknamed the “pied piper of recruiting,” she drew record numbers of students of color to Texas A&M to study urban education. A career highlight included giving expert testimony before the U.S. Congress on the opportunity gap between Black and white children in America.

“Appearing before Congress was one of the many opportunities that Texas A&M gave me,” said Carter. “The university allowed me to soar.”

The duo’s work continues through their former students, now faculty members in the department, who are researching, among other things, how to redefine the field of urban education to include suburban and rural environments.

“They left us an incredible foundation for our ongoing work,” says Associate Professor Jemimah Young ’06 ’08 ’13, recalling a conversation with Larke years ago when entering the multicultural doctoral program. “Dr. Larke told me, ‘You’re going to come in here, major in multicultural education, and you’re going to be a professor, so I can retire in peace. At the time, I didn’t know what she meant by those words, but I do now. It’s about carrying on their work, about evolving the program and the future of multicultural and urban education,” said Young, now program chair of the multicultural education program. “I can’t quite put into words what it means to be here and to be part of their academic lineage and continue this most important work.”

To give to the Carter-Larke Lecture Series endowment, contact Jody Ford ’99, senior director of development, at (979) 847-8655 or by submitting a message using the form below.

You can also make an online gift toward the lecture series' endowment or support its crowdfunding initiative by making an online donation at Texas A&M's Spirit of Giving website.