Monday, April 21, 2025
Members of Malverne High School’s Black Studies Club hosted an expansive program in celebration of Black History Month on Feb. 13. The two-hour production, in the MHS performing arts center, featured singing, dancing and art, in recognition of the contributions of Black leaders past and present.
The theme of the program was Trailblazers, and it included remarks by the school’s own trailblazer, Superintendent Lorna Lewis, as well as speeches from Emmanuel Adeyeye and the Rev. Roderick Caesar III, on what being a trailblazer means, and how those who have fit that description have overcome hardships.
“I have landed in a wonderful district where the children look like me and they can see that there are possibilities for their future because I am here,” Lewis said. “I truly believe that God landed me here as a way of giving the message of the possibilities of a child that was born in a house in Jamaica, without running water or electricity, without a toilet inside the house, that I could end up being here as your superintendent.”
Lewis, who plans to retire at the end of the school year, has spent 46 years in education. Born in Jamaica, she came to the United States at age 16 to study physics at Fordham University. She went on to earn three master’s degrees and a doctorate from Columbia University.
Lewis began her career as a science and math teacher before working her way through several administrative positions on Long Island. Before coming to Malverne, she served as superintendent in the East Williston and Plainview-Old Bethpage districts, both predominantly white. She has spent five years leading Malverne’s schools.
She credits her access to public education for her career opportunities and success, and reminded her audience how valuable a resource it is. “Nobody can take learning out of you,” Lewis said. “Physical things can disappear, but once you have an education, that is your ticket to success.”
Malverne High Principal Kesha Bascombe describes Lewis as “a true pioneer in both education and science. She has shattered expectations and opened doors for so many who will follow in her footsteps.”
The Black Studies Club members honored other Black trailblazers with their presentations of “Letters from the Past,” in which they read letters they wrote detailing the life and impact of Black trailblazers.
A letter from Maya Angelou, author of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” was written by Lain Pickersgill and read by Sanaa Demosthenes. Jade Ackies read a letter from politician Shirley Chisholm, and Morgan Daly read one from Fayard and Harold Nicholas, the legendary Nicholas Brothers tap-dancing duo.
Yomna Mahmoud read a letter from NASA Astronaut Victor J. Glover, who is slated to be the first Black man to go to the moon on the Artemis II mission in 2026. And Isaiah Smith read one written by Malakai Pearson, from NBA superstar LeBron James.
Malverne High School alumnus Adeyeye, an information security analyst at American Express and a pastor at Abundant Life Christian Center in Brownsville, Brooklyn, spoke about what it means to be a trailblazer. “My definition of a trailblazer is simply this: a tone-setter who isn’t afraid to change the game no matter how the game is played,” he said. “Meaning a trailblazer is someone who sets the pace, who sets the tone, someone who isn’t afraid to step outside the box.”
Adeyeye encouraged students to pave the way for those who come after them, to challenge the status quo, what society tells them they can and can’t be, and to not accept limits based on who they are and where they come from.
“One thing my dad always says to me is, where we stop is where you guys are supposed to start,” he told the crowd. “That’s the mentality of a trailblazer. That’s how it works. You don’t start where others before you have already passed. No, you start where they stopped, and you keep going and going and going.”
Members of Malverne’s Poetry Club performed a spoken-word poem titled “Rice,” which explores themes of culture and representation by way of different rice dishes. And the Black Studies Steppers performed a step medley titled “From Factories to Freedom.”
Natalie Severe sang of Alicia Keys’s “Girl on Fire,” and Charisma Fowler and Keturah Caesar performed “Glory,” by rapper Common and John Legend. The song was featured in the 2014 film “Selma,” about the civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1965, led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Jalen Blue and Zamari Paul played the song “ti o dara igba bo” on the djembe drums. Blue also performed “Blue Train,” alongside Kaiden Ulysse, Jamar Smith and Mikayla Clayton in a Jazz Quartet.
Caesar, leader of the Foundation Church in Jamaica, Queens, spoke about how trailblazers overcome hardships.
“If you’re blazing a trail that no one has gone before, to do that, it’s difficult,” Caesar said. “Rejection is going to come your way, but how do you deal with rejection as someone who blazes the trail?”
He explained that in order to persist, you need grit, tenacity, boldness and a way to think differently. He highlighted the importance of having the support of your community as you tackle new endeavors, and the crucial role of knowing your reason for continuing on your path.
“As we overcome and as we’re trailblazers,” Caesar added, “remember that we need to look back in the past, and do that to positively influence our present.”
