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Noble graduates, families, current and former staff, supporters, and friends,
It’s a honor to be able to write to you today. My name is Constance Jones Brewer, and this month, I began my role as Noble’s new president. I’m grateful to our superintendent, Michael Milkie, for the opportunity to serve the Noble community in this capacity, and I look forward to meeting as many of you as I can.
On Monday, in remembrance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I revisited a photo that I took at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. last year. There were hundreds of photos, but this one caught my eye in particular.
Look closely and you will see that the anti-lynching rally happened, years ago, right where Muchin College Prep and the Noble Support Team offices sit today.
What was once a site to protest lynching—an unconscionable attack on humanity that particularly impacted black and brown people—now stands a Noble school that is one of the city’s top leaders in college enrollment. And in the back of that school are the offices where staff members work tirelessly to support all 18 Noble campuses in historically underserved communities across Chicago. Our students and staff are changing history on this very block.
I don’t have to tell you that we still have so far to go. Yet there is reason to be hopeful. I have to believe that in countless ways our students, families, alumni, teachers, and staff are fulfilling Dr. King’s dream. We are working together to change Chicago and make our city and country a better place for all people, regardless of their race, socioeconomic status, gender, or background.
As a proud African American woman, I know that I stand on the shoulders of so many extraordinary leaders, including my parents. First generation college graduates from rural North Carolina, they taught me the value of a high quality education and all the opportunities that it can bring. Every morning when I come to work at Noble, whether visiting one of our many campuses across the city or coming to our offices near the site of that downtown rally years ago, I cannot help but see myself in our students. They are going to do such incredible things. It is truly a privilege to serve them, and all of you.
Thank you for your time and your trust. Be Noble.
Constance Jones Brewer
President, Noble Network of Charter Schools |
