"Tales Told Out Of School" documentary showcase will be Friday from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. in L.A. Pittinger Student Center room 301.
After two years of research and conducting interviews, the Department of History will hold the documentary film showcase of "Tales Told Out Of School" Friday, to celebrate the history made by one student-powered immersive learning course directed by Michael Doyle, director of the Ball State public history program.
The African American Alumni Oral History Project-II created the short film to celebrate the completion of the project that showcases men and women of color who earned degrees at Ball State between 1950 and the present in commemoration of the university's centenary in 2018, according to a press release.
The 15 minute documentary film features highlights from the stories of 22 alumni.
When Marquice Gee, a sophomore business administration major was looking for an Honors College Colloquium course for the Spring of 2017 she never expected a professor to be as engrossed with her culture as much as she is.
With the lack of history publicized about African-Americans at Ball State, The Black Alumni Constituent Society approached Doyle about recording the history of African American Alumni.
Through those conversations and collaboration, the Living Black History Oral Project was created and took effect in 2015.
Students read about the unique history of Ball State and the books "Middletown: A Study in Modern American Culture" and "The Other Side of Middletown: Exploring Muncie's African American Community " before scheduling two hour interviews.
After its publishing, "Middletown" was found to be flawed in that the sociologists, Robert and Helen Lynd, mentioned little about the of people of color in Muncie, Doyle said. This later stemmed the publishing of “The Other Side of Middletown” to counter the original book.
Adhering to the wishes of the Black Alumni Consistency Society, Doyle created a curriculum based on the readings, detailed research of their subjects, traveling to the National Museum of African-American History, and getting the interviewees to Ball State for the interview.
“How many people ever get a chance to tell their life story at a two-hour duration,” Doyle said.
Initially, Doyle wanted students to interview at least 40 African-American Alumni or faculty, but this proved to be a challenge he didn’t anticipate.
“People have to have the art of persuasion," he said. "Many of our interviewees had to be coaxed to want to do this."
This was not a simple task for students and interviewees.
“Some don’t think that their story is that big of a deal and others are successful because they're really busy and they don’t really have the time to take two days off to fly across the country,” Doyle said.
In addition to the exposure to the rich history of African-American history in Muncie, Gee said she had to overcome the hurdle of being the only African-American female out of the 10 students.
“My understanding and appreciation for the subject I knew would be a little bit different than what the other students are," Gee said. "Just because of our backgrounds how we receive the information is a little different.”
Gee said the Living Black History Oral Project has helped her find a deeper appreciation for Ball State and the African-American Alumni before her.
Friday's showcase will be held 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. in L.A. Pittinger Student Center room 301.
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