The principal's office
Mark M. Hancock / © The Dallas Morning News
Fifth-grader Dietrich Irving (center), listens to both his grandmother Dorothy Holley (left) and Sister Roberta Fulton (right) during a parent conference at Our Mother of Mercy Catholic School on November 29, 2001. Sister Roberta is the first black principal and nun at the oldest African-American parochial school in Fort Worth.
Labels: education, Fort Worth, religion, Tarrant County
Posted by Mark M. Hancock @ 11:59 PM
7 comments
7 Comments:
That's a great photograph. I love his posture combined with their expressions. It really gives that "Catholic parochial school" feeling.
It was tense.
Great shot!!! You can feel the tension of the faceless kid. Man, I wouldn't want to be in his shoes!
Mark, I agree that this is a great and powerful image, but I want to know what their attitude was toward you being there shooting? It seems like a personal moment. You don't mention whether the student was being laid in to, but we get that impression from Sister Roberta. I wonder if some new PJs could benefit from your expertise on shooting personal scenes like this, how to handle themselves when they're scolded, told to leave, etc.
I was documenting Sister Roberta all morning. I asked the grandmother if it was OK for me to hang out with them since meetings are a large part of a principal's day. She had no problem with it. This moment happened about 20 minutes into a conversation and was sparked by something the student said. By then, everyone was accustomed to me and the sound of the camera.
It was a brief moment in a relatively calm meeting. If I hadn't been working the situation hard, it could have been missed entirely.
Mark,
As a teacher, I can tell you that you have captured--in this one shot--most of what is missing from public education: passion, guidance, accountability, tough love, and concern. Powerful statement. (by the way, major improvement in commenting process).
'Diary of a Mad Black Woman'. 'nuff said.
You captured it baby! Too bad for him.
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