Dr. Chavis: Lumbees have 'lust for life'
By Hayley Burgess
Managing Editor
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| Photo by Amanda Anderson |
| Robeson County Native Dr. Ben Chavis speaks to an audience March 15 in the Mary Livermore Library as part of the final Elmer W. Hunt Photograph Collection Indentification and Discussion Series for the year. |
Nearly 200 people filled the Mary Livermore Library March 15 to hear Dr. Ben Chavis speak as part of the final Elmer W. Hunt Photograph Collection Identification and Discussion Series of the school year.
Dr. Chavis, a native of the Saddletree community in Robeson County, spoke to the crowd about the themes he saw in Hunt's photographs and his experiences in the education system. The first theme Dr. Chavis said he sees in Hunt's photos are hardworking people.
"The photos show Indian people hard at work," Dr. Chavis said.
Dr. Chavis also said he sees a lust for life.
"I saw people celebrating… We have a lust for life. Whatever we do, we do it 100 percent," Dr. Chavis said.
He added that the photos from Hunt are a good documentary of Indian people.
Dr. Chavis said he had Hunt twice as a teacher when he was in school, and he appreciated how honest Hunt was with him.
There are more than 53,000 negatives from Hunt, and the Identification Series seeks to indentify the people in the photos.
Dr. Chavis is best known for his work as a principal of the American Indian Public Charter School in Oakland, Calif., where he was able to transform a failing, low-performing school into one of the highest ranked schools in the United States. He wrote a book, Crazy Like a Fox, about his experiences implementing the system.
While Dr. Chavis still works and lives in California, he still has a house and ranch in Robeson County which he visits every month. Despite all he's done, he said he still gets nervous when he is asked to speak in Robeson County.
"It's always difficult to speak when you come home," Dr. Chavis said. "It's an honor to come back and speak."
Dr. Chavis thanked his former teachers, many of whom were in attendance at the event.
"I wouldn't be here without them," Dr. Chavis said.
Dr. Chavis went on to speak about the school system's history and the precious segregation in the area, including at UNCP. He attended an Indian segregated public school in Robeson County.
"This school [UNCP] was funded based on the foundation of segregation," Dr. Chavis said. "We couldn't go to the white schools, but they couldn't come here either."
He also said he has his own views on the Lumbee tribe receiving federal recognition.
"I don't need any federal government to tell me I'm Indian," Dr. Chavis said.
Dr. Chavis called his ancestors "bad to the bone" because they funded the Indian schools around the area themselves.
"Our ancestors were not educated, but they were hard working people, and that's the legacy we have," Dr. Chavis said.
Dr. Chavis addressed concerns of people in the area about their children not attending UNCP. He said the reason they may not be here is because they are getting offers from other universities like he did when he attended the University of Arizona.
"You wonder why your kids aren't here. It's because they are getting offers to some of the best colleges in the country," Dr. Chavis said.
Dr. Chavis said the bottom line that he sees is that "we are hard working people and we can accomplish anything."
This philosophy came into play when he was working to implement his American Indian Public Chater School Model of Education, which he used in Oakland. His educational model has been used in other schools since he became the chief executive in charge of training and implementing the model in schools that serve low-income students. Since implementing the model, he has had students from five of those schools have the highest math scores in the United States.
"I was honest with the kids and made them work," Dr. Chavis said. "We worked hard and it came from my experiences from Robeson County."
Currently, Dr. Chavis is building a math school in Saddletree for fifth and sixth graders. The school was paid for with Dr. Chavis' own money and will run from June 13 to July 1.
Dr. Chavis graduated from Prima College and the University of Arizona after receiving an athletic scholarship. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in education, his Master of Education in administration and his Ph.D. in philosophy and education from the University Arizona in Tucson. He has been a faculty member at San Francisco State University, the University of California at Berkeley and Pembroke State University.
