Dear 50th Anniversary Foster Kindergarten Reunion Attendees,

The Foster School/King Lab 1966 Kindergarten Reunion project is a gathering to commemorate the teachers, families, administrators, leaders, students, and community that tried to shift Evanston from a segregated society towards an integrated one.  A warm welcome to this historic gathering, especially to those who participated in this courageous experiment that began at Foster School with 10 kindergarten classes 50 years ago.  We hope for an enriching weekend of reunion and reflection.

We are so excited to see all of you July 15-17 in Evanston to celebrate this historic milestone in the desegregation of Evanston's District 65 schools. We have included the schedule below and remind you that the Saturday documentary film screening and panels are free and open to the public if you would like to invite others to attend.  Also, we encourage everyone to add to your profile in the reunion yearbook so we can start reconnecting before the event as well as have our collective stories in one place.

A few updates and logistical details:

THIS EVENT IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC and is fully wheelchair accessible!

REGISTRATION

If you have not yet registered, you can do so here: Register for meals and events (pre-registration is helpful for the planning committee but is not required).

LOCATION

The events Friday night and Saturday will be held at the Weissbourd-Holmes Family Focus Center (formerly Foster/King Lab School), located at 2010 Dewey Avenue in Evanston.  Saturday evening and Sunday morning will be at local establishments as outlined below.

PARKING

There is parking in the back of the building, and there is also street parking on Foster, Simpson and Dewey.  Please enter the front door when you arrive to check-in.  

SPONSORS

A huge thank you to our event sponsors: Shorefront Legacy Center and Family Focus. Help us show our gratitude by donating to these organizations (on-line or in-person at the reunion)!
http://www.family-focus.org/centers/evanston-our-place
http://www.shorefrontlegacy.org/

WHAT TO BRING

Friday night will be a chance for us to gather and reminisce, so please bring stories and items you would like to “Show and Tell” (photos, memorabilia, music, art projects, classwork, etc.). We will end the night with dancing to a 1960-1970 playlist, so make sure you bring your dancing shoes!

SHARING YOUR MEMORIES AND EVENT PHOTOS

We’ll keep the reunion website up for several more weeks and encourage everyone to add to your profile. In addition, please take a moment during the weekend to share your memories on the post-it notes available in Norwood Hall.
 
Upload your event photos to Reunion Website (click on the 1966 Foster/King Lab Kindergarten Reunion Photos in the left hand navigatation bar) and/or to the Foster Lab Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010777332781

ARCHIVE DONATIONS

One of our sponsors, Shorefront Legacy Center (http://www.shorefrontlegacy.org/) will be collecting items you would like to donate for their permanent archives. Your contributions will be important towards documenting the Foster/King Lab history as part of Shorefront’s mission to collect, preserve and educate people about Black history on Chicago’s suburban North Shore. Items to consider: photographs, class work, books, ID cards, hall passes, written notes, projects, school literature, PTA information, dance/holiday flyers. Shorefront will have a scanner on hand to scan photos or feel free to send a scan yourself (300dpi resolution, .jpg file) to shorefront@me.com.

INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITY

Throughout the weekend, participants will have the opportunity to be interviewed for inclusion in a continuation of Larry Brook’s 1967 documentary "The Desegregation of Foster School," reflecting back 50 years later.  Please let us know when you check-in if you are willing to be interviewed! Interviews will take place on the third floor. Contact Dino Robinson or Gail Hutchison for more information (see end of this email for the core interview questions). After the reunion, attendees will also have the opportunity to interview with UC Berkeley Public Policy Professor Rucker Johnson, who is studying the long-term impacts of school desegregation.

1966 FOSTER REUNION PROJECT PLANNING COMMITTEE

Doria Johnson, 1966 Kindergartener, doriadee47@gmail.com
Carlton Moody, King Lab Faculty, cmoody2@gmail.com
Dino Robinson, Founder of Shorefront Legacy Center, shorefront@me.com
Susan Hagstrom, 1966 Kindergartener, susanhagstrom@yahoo.com
Sarah Moran, 1966 Kindergartener, sbmoran@gmail.com
Gail Hutchison, 1966 Kindergartener, gailjoy@sbcglobal.net
Lisa Disch, 1966 Kindergartener, ldisch@umich.edu

The full schedule and details are below.  We look forward to seeing you very soon!!

FRIDAY, JULY 15

5:00 pm     Doors Open at Family Focus (formerly Foster/King Lab). Meet in Norwood Hall, in the basement.

6:00 pm     Building Tour

7:00 pm     Welcome Dinner Catered by Hecky’s Barbeque and Las Palmas ($15 at the door or prepay on reunion website, no one turned away for lack of funds). Show and Tell - bring your stories! Please bring your memorabilia, artifacts, photos, art projects, class assignments, etc. to share! Norwood Hall. Let’s build an archive!

9:00 pm     Dance in the Gym

SATURDAY, JULY 16

9:00 am  Larry Brook's 1967 documentary "The Desegregation of Foster School." Norwood Hall. (free and open to the public)

10:00 am We were there! Panel of 1966 Kindergartners, Parents, Teachers, Administrators and more. Auditorium. (free and open to the public)

Moderator: Dino Robinson, Founder and Director of the Shorefront Legacy Center and Moderator

• Wanda Len Davis, 1966 Foster Kindergartener

• Thomas J. Mertz, 1966 Foster Kindergartener

• Bennett Johnson, Activist and Past President of NAACP.

• Carlton Moody, former King Lab faculty

• Robin Tucker (formerly Robin Moran), parent of 1966 kindergartener, Chair of the Citizen’s Advisory Commission on Integration

12:00 pm Lunch Catered by Dengeo's ($15 at the door or prepay on reunion website, no one turned away for lack of funds). Norwood Hall.

1:30 pm Where Are We Now? Panel and discussion on the relationship between the events of Evanston in the 1960s and current events. Auditorium. (free and open to the public)

Moderator: Doria Johnson, 1966 Foster Kindergartener

• Dr. Iva Carruthers, noted educator and social advocate

• Reverend Dr. Michael C. R. Nabors, Senior Pastor of Second Baptist Church of Evanston  

• Dr. Gilo Logan, Diversity Consultant, Adjunct Professor Harper College, Critical Race Theory Expert, S.O.U.L Creations founder

• Oliver Ruff, Education consultant, District 65 administrator/teacher

3:45 pm  Larry Brook's 1967 documentary "The Desegregation of Foster School."  Followed by discussion and reminiscing. Norwood Hall. (free and open to the public)

5:30 pm  Happy Hour at Temperance Beer Company. 2000 West Dempster Street, Evanston, IL 60202* http://temperancebeer.com/ Self-pay on site.

SUNDAY, JULY 17

Several churches and synagogues were involved in the civil rights and desegregation movements in Evanston in the 1960s, including Beth Emet Synagogue, Bethel AME Church, Ebenezer AME Church, the Unitarian Church, Second Baptist Church, and more. You are invited to participate in these and other Sunday morning worship services.

11:30 am  Sunday Lunch at the Lyfe Kitchen, 1603 Orrington Ave, Chicago, IL 60201 http://www.lyfekitchen.com/location/il/evanston/  Self-pay on site.

* Note that Temperance Beer Company, true to its name, only sells beer (no non-alcoholic drinks, other alcohol options, or food). However, Union food truck food truck will be on site and you are welcome to bring food inside. Temperance also has arrangements with other local establishments that will deliver food. Driving/Parking Directions: We are located at 2000 Dempster St in Evanston, which is about a block west of Dodge. It can be tricky finding the brewery because we don't front on Dempster. Turn south down the 2nd driveway west of Panino's (in the Dempster Plaza). The driveway is directly across Dempster from Rolf's Auto Care. It's also the driveway for Goldfish Swim School, so when you see that sign, turn! The driveway is west of (and on the other side of the street from) McDonald's. Once you're heading south on the driveway, you'll see a big wooden cube—that's the beer garden. The Tap Room entrance is just south of that.

Foster School Interviews Core Questions

1. Full name (maiden name)

2. In what year did you enter the Experimental school at Foster and, if possible, what are your earliest memories of the first weeks at the school?

3. Who were some of the teachers you remember and what early impressions do you recall?

4. Do you recall any conversations that your parents had about the school or any conversations you had with your parents about the school?

5. When attending the school, were you able to walk there or did you take the bus?

6. As the years progressed, what are some of the fondest experiences you had at the experimental school at Foster?

7. At what point in your early educational experience, did you realize you were in this specific “experiment”?

8. What controversial issues came into focus throughout your early years there?

9. Looking back today, how has attending the experimental school/King Lab, influenced your life and raising your family?

10. What takeaways can you share with us about your experience at King Lab?

11. 1What is your take on the effectiveness of your experience at the school and can elements of it be applied today?

12. Reflecting back, what, if any issues may still have an impact today that were similar then?

13. Where do you currently live and how would you describe the community you live in?

14. If you have children, what do you hope for in their engagement in today’s society?

15. What is your definition of Diversity?

16. Is there anything else you want to add?