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Ashley Dawson (left) and her daughter Shana Dawson at their home in Aldan, Pa. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
When Ashley Dawson was in first grade, she was one of only a few Black students at Walnut Street Elementary in Darby.
But in fifth grade, her teacher, principal and assistant principal at the Delaware County school were all Black women. It’s what inspired Dawson, who now works as a family involvement coordinator at a cyber charter, to pursue a career in education.
She was sitting in assembly when she first saw Principal Renee Musgrove and Assistant Principal Ivy Brown.
When Ashley Dawson was in first grade, she was one of only a few Black students at Walnut Street Elementary in Darby.
But in fifth grade, her teacher, principal and assistant principal at the Delaware County school were all Black women. Itâs what inspired Dawson, who now works as a family involvement coordinator at a cyber charter, to pursue a career in education.
She was sitting in assembly when she first saw Principal Renee Mustgrove and Assistant Principal Ivy Brown.
âThere was something about them ⦠I wanted to do what they did,â said Dawson. âBecause they showed me what happens when you take the time and you really go outside the curriculum â you work with the student and meet them where theyâre at. Those women, they did that.â