Black History Today: Baionne Coleman, courageous educator and school leader
/Black History Today, created by Marcus Harden in honor of Black History Month, pays tribute to the living legacy of Black history in our community and beyond and recognizes the people shaping the future.
Presented in collaboration with the South Seattle Emerald.
“My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you. But for every real word spoken, for every attempt I had ever made to speak those truths for which I am still seeking, I had made contact with other women while we examined the words to fit a world in which we all believed, bridging our differences.”
By Marcus Harden
To see a true display of courage in others is inspiring. Their will, their fortitude doesn't just move you, but transforms you to become better than ever you believed yourself to be.
When your voice is stolen — or worse yet, when you give it away — the person who uses theirs while gently placing their arm around you, becoming a human amplifier to help your voice resonate once again, is the highest level of courageous.
Baionne Coleman is that amplification and courage personified. Born and raised in the Central District of Seattle, Baionne has been an emblem of courage since her formative years. Whether that was through being one of the only “girls'' to play football at Garfield High School, or being the tough-minded sibling who provides nurturing and guidance; whether as the caring daughter who makes sure her dad is outfitted in one of his favorite brimmed hats, or as the proud daughter who turns her mother’s untimely passing into the ember that lights her flame for pursuing higher education and beyond, Baionne’s courage is never just about her but about service to others.
Baionne’s courage has shown up most powerfully when it comes to family. She is an affirming and proud mother of four beautifully brilliant, wonderfully unique children whom she nourishes and infuses with courage in their own unique ways. She is loved and supported by her equally courageous husband.
Baionne’s equally great display of courage, though, is for the many families she is connected to, specifically through her work as an educator and school founder. While she always seemed destined to one day be the leader of a school, the road took twists and turns, overcoming systems of oppression embodied in archaic paradigms and executed under a veil of “support.”
Baionne’s courage to speak truth to power around systemic racism, oppressive workspaces in educational structures and the sometimes dismissive tactics of those thought of as “allies” sparked change seen and unseen. Like most brave people, she didn’t do it because there was no risk to her name, to her family or her reputation. She felt the fear and did it anyway!
In leading through those moments she transcended them, and now walks alongside a new community, fulfilling in this transformation a promise broken by others before her to co-create in an intentional and authentic way what is now Rainier Valley Leadership Academy, Washington State’s only operating public charter school with a CEO of the Global Majority. Baionne’s courage sent soundwaves through all of those bold enough to hear it.
Baionne’s brave spirit pours into her school community, where young people are positioned as the experts they are, leading weekly “Panther Talks” with national celebrities like Spice Adams or influential local politicians like Sharon Tamiko Santos. Her students speak on issues around not just social equity, but educational equity, such as making room for more Black, Brown and Indigenous leaders and the need for equitable funding for public charter schools. It is clear always that others grow because of the courage Baionne inspires.
Maya Angelou once stated, “Courage is the most important of any of the virtues, because without it you can do nothing else.” Baionne’s courage and virtue are transformative, empowering and emboldening others. She is a leader, she is a trailblazer and she is Black History Today!
To learn more or contribute to Rainier Valley Leadership Academy visit: https://myrvla.org/.
Original artwork created by Devin Chicras for the South Seattle Emerald.
