ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION I am an educational archaeologist. I never identified myself as such, but in retrospect I’ve been an educational archaeologist for most of my life. But what is an educational archaeologist? If an archaeologist is a person who discovers, collects, and analyzes the material remains of past cultures, among other things, an educational archaeologist is a person who discovers, collects, and analyzes the written and visual materials of our educational past (and present). I have spent most of my academic life searching for, collecting, and analyzing books, journal articles, newspapers and magazines, and other written and visual materials on the experiences of communities of color. I have spent many hours, days, months, and years in libraries and archives of all sizes practicing my archaeological craft. I have searched in bookstores, video stores, second-hand stores, antique stores, estate sales, yard sales, and photo archives looking for materials that help me better understand communities of color.
