A Legacy of Learning with Trailblazing Civil Rights Era Teacher

Historical Haddonfield teacher Joyce Gilchrist Pierce sat with us for a conversation at Haddonfield Public Library on how generational bridges can be gapped even during the summer break. Recently honored by Haddonfield Middle School for being the first Black teacher to teach white students in an integrated setting, she reflected by telling us “After all the years there you don’t realize how much you’re loved and it was wonderful.” Her warmth and passion for her family and students lit the room as she shared memories of her career to hopes for the future of education.

Pierce, a trailblazing teacher, was originally inspired to be an educator by her mother’s friend who could not read and write. Only in third grade at the time, Joyce would pass along the lessons she learned at school to her family friend although she was much older. She was just a junior in Haddon Heights High when the Supreme Court’s Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954 found racially segregated schools unconstitutional. About a decade later Joyce Gilchrist Pierce taught in Camden and East Brunswick until she was chosen as the first Black teacher to instruct white students in an integrated setting at Elizabeth Haddon Elementary. Educating 2nd to 7th graders for 38 years, Pierce retired in 2004. 

As an elect for the Lawnside Borough Council she was briefly appointed as the mayor of Lawnside when James Bryant became ill. Although her term was short and under unique circumstances she was able to complete an on-ramp onto 295 and the town’s first recreational field there.

“Enjoy and learn from your child in every grade. If you can extend their learning, extend it.” Pierce advised when we considered the changing summer setting for students. “Stay active. My grandchildren are at a swim meet today. Kids can always find a way to work with senior citizens whether it’s cutting grass or shoveling snow. I know it's harder to do that these days.” she shared humorously. One can expect this pioneering educator to also encourage additional reading but that evolved into a conversation about the necessity to keep up with current events.

“Most people are watching or hearing short blurbs. We have to get more people reading.” she implored as we segued into the subject of the recent presidential debate where the concept of a “Black job” was conceived by a certain ex-President. “There’s no such thing as a Black job or a White job.” she made clear as she remembered her father who was qualified but also questioned by peers on his career choice. Her father Thomas Alfred Gilchrist was one of the first Blacks in the Carpenter’s Union of Pennsylvania and was also a welder in New York helping build ships for World War 2. 

The legacy shared here behind Joyce Gilchrist Pierce’s family spells out how she has the fortitude that built her career with the Haddonfield and Lawnside community. Her commitment to share wisdom was felt as she spent time with us even through her symptoms from Parkinson’s which her daughter-in-law is wonderfully supportive through. As children passed by with a handful of books, Mrs.Pierce left us with a message, “We have to let our country grow in a positive way and we can only do that by teaching the boys and girls the right way.”