Educator's enthusiasm hasn't waned over years - New elementary school named after retired teacher and principal

It's been more than 20 years since she stepped into a classroom, but Bernice Chatman Freeman still misses the children.

The retired elementary school teacher, a Carrollton resident, said she has always loved working with young students because they have a strong desire to learn.

"Children - I like to make them believe in themselves," said Mrs. Freeman, now 83. "I always wanted to help somebody. I guess I got that from my mom. An old softie, that's really what I am."

Mrs. Freeman can trace her love of education to when she was a girl growing up on a farm in Carrollton.

Her parents weren't high school graduates but insisted their daughter go to school, and Mrs. Freeman said she loved it.

So much so that she became a teacher, and more than 20 years after retiring from the Carrollton- Farmers Branch school district, she has an elementary school named after her.

The district's new elementary in northern Irving opened Monday. It is the second school in the district named after a black resident of the area. The first was Rainwater Elementary, named for Annie Heads Rainwater in 1994.

Lorenzo Horton, who taught with Mrs. Freeman at Carrollton Colored School, said the honor is well-deserved because Mrs. Freeman was a devoted teacher.

"There was nothing that she wouldn't do for a child to help them improve," said Mr. Horton, 86.

 

Carrollton history

Mrs. Freeman's roots in Carrollton run deep.

She was born and reared on her grandparents' farm and she attended Carrollton Colored School, which was about half a mile away. Her memories have blurred, but she remembers she was constantly reading.

She also remembers two teachers who influenced her. One of them helped her grieve when her grandfather died; the other made students aware of the contributions of blacks and "made us feel proud of ourselves."

Her teaching career started in Telephone, Texas, a little town in north central Texas. After earning a teaching certificate at Paul Quinn College, she taught students at the all-black school in Telephone and earned $59 a month.

Within a year or so, she had returned to Carrollton and was teaching the sons and daughters of her former elementary schoolmates - at the same school. She spent her summers taking classes at the now-closed Bishop College in Marshall, where she earned a bachelor's degree. She received a master's degree from North Texas State University.

Not much had changed, Mrs. Freeman said of Carrollton Colored School.

It was the mid-1940s, and the students were still using hand-me-down books from the all-white schools and outhouses. And they were still taking classes in the room where she had learned lessons years earlier.

Mr. Horton, who taught students in fifth through eighth grades, said Mrs. Freeman was deeply involved in her students' academic and personal lives, often buying clothes for those who couldn't afford them.

Years later, Mrs. Freeman became principal of Carrollton Colored School when it was renamed in honor of her grandfather, J.H. Bush.

The school later closed and was torn down.

 

A tight ship

Carrollton resident Willie Rainwater, who was one of Mrs. Freeman's students and whose grandfather founded Carrollton Colored School, said Mrs. Freeman was a blessing at a time when education for black children was ignored.

There are many children who wouldn't have opportunities in life without her, said Mr. Rainwater, 61.

Leonard Graves recalled his former teacher with a chuckle. Mrs. Freeman, he said, had no patience for unruly students and would carry around a willow switch to punish troublemakers.

"As a matter of fact," said Mr. Graves, 62, "she used to whip us a lot, too. I deserved it all the time, you know what I'm saying?"

Mr. Graves also gushed about Mrs. Freeman. She was a loving teacher who challenged her students and encouraged them to do better, he said.

Students loved her because she was passionate about teaching and went out of her way to make sure that they understood their lessons, he said.

"She didn't accept the word 'can't,'" said Mr. Graves, whose mother was a close friend of Mrs. Freeman's. "I guess that's why we loved her so much."

He added: "She wasn't only my favorite teacher; she's one of my favorite people."

Mrs. Freeman retired in 1981 and still lives in the same white house with green trim she has lived in since 1955.

She married late in life but was widowed when her husband, Ellis, died in 1994. She shares her five-bedroom home with a cousin and her cousin's granddaughter.

Age has slowed her, but she still runs errands in her 1998 green Buick Century. A devoted churchgoer, she regularly attends Simms Chapel A.M.E. Church in Carrollton.

"Like the rabbit in the briar patch, I was born and bred in it," she said.

She's a soft-spoken woman with tight silver curls and a dry sense of humor.

"I'm getting younger every day," she said.

 

Campaign for name

The campaign to name the school after Mrs. Freeman was started by former students and other residents who are members of the Christ Community Connection, a local nonprofit group.

They sent letters to the school board, and board members approved the name in February.

Rachel Lewis, a retired elementary school teacher with the district, said it was important to honor Mrs. Freeman while she was alive.

School board Vice President Nancy Strickland, chairwoman of the naming committee, said Mrs. Freeman had been an outstanding educator and was a role model for teachers and students.

"She's a lovely, progressive teacher," said Mrs. Strickland. "Ms. Freeman was a wonderful asset to the system."

Fellow committee member Lynn Chaffin called Mrs. Freeman a "pioneer" in the education system and said she "embodied educational excellence and progress in the face of adversity."

The Bernice Chatman Freeman Elementary School is a brand-new brick building in the 8700 block of Valley Ranch Parkway. The 75,160-square-foot structure cost $8.6 million, according to a school district spokeswoman.

 

Spring inauguration

Nearly 400 students have registered this school year, said principal Tracy Smith.

Teachers have decorated the classrooms with bright-colored posters and alphabet charts. Bookshelves are filled with new books and stuffed animals, and students will get to use hi-tech laptops in their classes.

The signature colors of the school are blue, green and purple, and the school mascot may be a star, said Ms. Smith.

"I have a lot of dreams and aspirations for the school," she said.

Ms. Smith said the school would be officially inaugurated in the spring at a ceremony to honor Mrs. Freeman. She said students and staff members were fortunate to be able to meet Mrs. Freeman.

Mrs. Freeman has not toured the school but said she was humbled and thankful for the gesture of her former students who helped push for the school name.

"It makes me proud of the children, proud that they thought enough of me," she said.
 

Dallas Morning News, The (TX) - Friday, August 20, 2004
Author: MARGARITA MARTÍN-HIDALGO, Staff Writer

Submitted by Edward Lynn Williams