Black Student Association hosted its annual Black History Month program on Feb. 12 in the auditorium. The theme was “Decision Day,” showcasing the unique culture and “black excellence” of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

The story followed quarterback Jaylen Adams, played by senior Daniel Percy, who was faced with the decision of which college or university he would attend. Jaylen, who was very popular and heavily recruited, had to decide where he wanted to go and where he felt he’d best fit in.

Theater teacher Adrienne Carter was tasked with writing, producing and directing the show by assistant principals Lawrence Garnett Jr. and Alfred Lloyd about two weeks before winter break.

“It was a really challenging task to be given two weeks before Christmas to put on a show right in the middle of February, especially given the workload that I already had,” Carter said. “But I love a challenge.”

Carter reached out to teachers that might be interested in planning the show and began discussing what they could do in less than 2 months.

“For me, as a theater person, I usually take months to plan something that’s going to be produced, but I knew we had a tight time schedule,” Carter said. “I wanted to make sure we could collaborate and figure out what’s the best possible way to use our time and our students to tell a good story.”

Teachers such as Courtney Meekins, who sponsors BSA, as well as Dalilah Whitmore, Johnedra Ledet, Lanette Charles, Crystal Garrett, Michael Simmonds, Tamisha Armstrong and Sarah Shado were all part of the show. The team of teachers focused on celebrating historically black colleges and universities, while figuring out a way to make the centennial of Black History Month stand out.

“We thought that focusing on HBCUs would be a great way to also introduce some of our students to historically black colleges and universities who might not know about them, who might not know about the history of them and might not understand the significance that they held for black people in this country,” Carter said.

Prior to the establishment of HBCUs, black individuals weren’t allowed to attend white institutions. HBCUs were built out of necessity after the Civil War to give black people an opportunity to receive a higher education.

“So we thought that was a great opportunity to expose Bellaire students who are starting to think about where they might want to go to college, to think that an HBCU might be a good opportunity for them to be in an environment that would celebrate who they are, their history, and also focusing on education, since we are in school,” Carter said.

In past years, the BHM performance has generally consisted of a talent show, but this year’s organizers wanted to emphasize the telling of a story. The theme of “Decision Day” stemmed from the significance of sports in Texas and at Bellaire.

“It felt like it would be a great opportunity to have a male football player who’s thinking about where he wants to go,” Carter said. “He’s being recruited by a lot of different schools, and a lot of these schools say they want him, but do they really want all of him?”

Throughout the program, Jaylen goes on a “magical journey” into Hillman University, a fictitious HBCU first created on the TV show “A Different World.”

“I knew we were going to have a hard time picking one because there are so many teachers who went to so many different HBCUs,” Carter said. “We’ll make one that’s already a fake show that people have a connection to. Maybe not these students, but their parents and grandparents remember watching that show, and so it felt like him going on this journey of discovering this HBCU left a lot of room for different kinds of experiences to happen.”

BSA’s goal with the Black history performance was to have as many black students at Bellaire feel like they were a part of a community that was able to tell this story.

“Black history is American history,” Carter said. “Without us, this country wouldn’t exist and the resilience that we have; those of us who came through the Middle Passage and those of us who have newly arrived from the motherland, have all shaped this country in a way that makes it the heart and soul of what it is.”