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This promise of change : one girl's story in the fight for school equality
2019
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Chronicles the efforts of fourteen-year-old Jo Ann Allen, who in 1956, was one of twelve African American students who broke the color barrier and integrated Clinton High School in Tennessee and who found herself the spokesperson for the group. - (Baker & Taylor)

A versed account shares the firsthand experiences of one of the young people who made history by joining 11 other African American students to integrate Central High School in 1956 Little Rock, describing how it felt to be rendered a civil rights spokesperson in the face of daunting national protests. Simultaneous eBook. - (Baker & Taylor)

"In 1956, one year before federal troops escorted the Little Rock 9 into Central High School, fourteen year old Jo Ann Allen was one of twelve African-American students who broke the color barrier and integrated Clinton High School in Tennessee. At firstthings went smoothly for the Clinton 12, but then outside agitators interfered, pitting the townspeople against one another. Uneasiness turned into anger, and even the Clinton Twelve themselves wondered if the easier thing to do would be to go back to their old school. Jo Ann--clear-eyed, practical, tolerant, and popular among both black and white students---found herself called on as the spokesperson of the group. But what about just being a regular teen? This is the heartbreaking and relatable story ofher four months thrust into the national spotlight and as a trailblazer in history. Based on original research and interviews and featuring backmatter with archival materials and notes from the authors on the co-writing process"-- - (Baker & Taylor)

A stunning nonfiction in verse co-written by one of the first people to desegregate a public high school and New York Times bestselling author Debbie Levy. - (McMillan Palgrave)

Recipient of a Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Honor
Winner of the 2019 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Nonfiction
2020 National Council for the Social Studies Carter G. Woodson Honor Recipient
A NYPL Top Ten of 2019

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year

In 1956, one year before federal troops escorted the Little Rock 9 into Central High School, fourteen year old Jo Ann Allen was one of twelve African-American students who broke the color barrier and integrated Clinton High School in Tennessee. At first things went smoothly for the Clinton 12, but then outside agitators interfered, pitting the townspeople against one another. Uneasiness turned into anger, and even the Clinton Twelve themselves wondered if the easier thing to do would be to go back to their old school. Jo Ann--clear-eyed, practical, tolerant, and popular among both black and white students---found herself called on as the spokesperson of the group. But what about just being a regular teen? This is the heartbreaking and relatable story of her four months thrust into the national spotlight and as a trailblazer in history. Based on original research and interviews and featuring backmatter with archival materials and notes from the authors on the co-writing process.

- (McMillan Palgrave)

Author Biography

Debbie Levy is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including I Dissent; The Year of Goodbyes: A True Story of Friendship, Family, and Farewells; and Imperfect Spiral. She lives in the Chesapeake Bay area.


Jo Ann Allen Boyce was one of twelve students to desegragate Clinton High School in 1956. She has worked as a professional singer and a nurse. She lives in Los Angeles.

- (McMillan Palgrave)

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Booklist Reviews

Students of school-desegregation history know of the Little Rock 9, but probably fewer are familiar with the Clinton 12, who integrated a Tennessee high school a full year earlier, in 1956. Boyce, one of the 12, recounts her story in a series of moving narrative poems that detail mid-twentieth-century segregation practices in the South; introduce her family and their place in the town; describe the early, relatively civilized integration of the school; and explain how the introduction of outside agitators heightened tensions and led to violence. Boyce's positive attitude about her experiences invites reader identification. Yes, she and others endured unrelenting pressure and threats, but the cause was important and the results worthwhile. The poems (mostly free verse with a sprinkling of other forms) personalize this history, and interspersed newspaper headlines and quotes situate the response of the larger world. Generous back matter includes additional information about the Clinton 12, a time line, period photos, sources, and further reading. Engrossing, informative, and important for middle-grade collections. Grades 5-9. Copyright 2018 Booklist Reviews.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1(2)
Part 1 Mine, Theirs, and Ours
3(28)
Part 2 Me, Myself, And I
31(18)
Part 3 Getting Ready (May to August 1956)
49(20)
Part 4 Down the Hill (Late August to Labor Day).
69(50)
Part 5 Try Again (Three Weeks in September)
119(40)
Part 6 Fear (Late September to Mid-November)
159(32)
Part 7 Going Downhill (Mid-November to December)
191(66)
Epilogue 257(14)
More about Jo Ann
260(1)
Clinton in Context
261(4)
The Other Members of the Clinton 12
265(6)
Writing This Book 271(8)
Scrapbook 279(12)
Timeline of School Desegregation and Civil Rights Landmarks 291(9)
Acknowledgments 300(1)
Quotation Sources 301(4)
Selected Bibliography 305(4)
Further Reading 309(1)
Photograph Credits 310

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