About
Kids in Birmingham 1963 is a nonprofit organization focused on two continuing imperatives that emerged from our nation’s 1960s struggle toward Civil Rights: Education and Reconciliation.
KIDS was created in 2013, during the 50th anniversary of the “Year of Birmingham,” a turning point in America’s modern civil rights movement, as a place to capture and preserve the firsthand accounts of young people who lived in and around Birmingham during this era of resistance and resilience in the city.
Across our short history, we have offered both a place and technologies to support the telling of personal recollections—through text and images, audio and video—accounts that might otherwise be forgotten by history. Beyond that, we have established multiple methods to connect journalists, writers, educators, and students to these historical records, and to the people who shared them. If you lived in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963, we invite you to add your recollections to our website.
• SHARE YOUR STORY. Click here for more information on how.
• REQUEST AN INTERVIEW WITH A STORYTELLER.
Write to info@kidsinbirmingham1963.org. We like to talk with students on their National History Day projects, answer journalists’ questions, and meet with classrooms—in person or virtually.
Today, Kids in Birmingham 1963—a 501(c)(3) organization—has dramatically expanded its projects and activities to support our Education and Reconciliation goals. We have organized our efforts around four named initiatives:
• Civil Rights History, Schoolwide
As a grassroots entity, KIDS depends on and is supported by many dedicated individuals and teams of unpaid volunteers, augmented by a small group of paid, part-time staff members. We are enormously grateful for the many people who have served, and continue to serve, in leadership roles within the KIDS organization.
LEADERSHIP WITHIN KIDS
FOUNDER: At age 10, Ann Jimerson moved with her family to Birmingham, watched her parents become active in the civil rights movement, and became a firsthand observer of the struggles against segregation and racism happening all around her. In 2013, against the backdrop of the 50th anniversary of the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, and motivated by her memories, Ann created Kids in Birmingham 1963, launching both a website and an organization focused on the twin goals of Civil Rights Education and Racial Reconciliation.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jacquelin Clarke Bell, retired from VP of Business and Administration, San Diego City College
Jeremiah Clabough, PhD, Associate Professor Curriculum Instruction, UAB School of Education
Joshua Jenkins, Secretary, Mississippi and Alabama Field Representative, National Parks Conservation Association
Ann Jimerson, Director & President, Kids in Birmingham 1963; retired from FHI 360
Dale Long, retired from City of Dallas Public Works Department
Pam Powell, Director & Producer, Bending the Arc Project; retired from director of publications and periodicals, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Valerie Price, Office of Student Success and Diversity, Samford University
Katherine Ramage, PhD, Vice President, retired from Inverness Research, Inc.
Robby Thompson, Esq, Treasurer, Staff Attorney, Alabama Court of Civil Appeals
Nefertari Yancie, PhD, Assistant Professor of History Education, Kennesaw State University
VOLUNTEER LEADERS AND TEAMS
KIDS Education Team
Goal: To motivate Birmingham-area schools to prioritize the teaching of Alabama’s civil rights history
Jackie Jackson • Ann Jimerson • Virginia Jones • Dian Murphy • Valerie Price • Bobbie Siegal • LeRoy Simmons • Linda Thacker • Melvin Todd
Educator Advisors: Dr. Jeremiah Clabough • Joshua Jenkins • Dr. Katherine Ramage
Housing Is Everything Team
Goal: To shine a spotlight on Birmingham’s history of housing discrimination and educate concerned populations on its impact and legacies
Jacqueline Bell • Olivia Ferriter • Debbie Harris • Jackie Jackson • Joshua Jenkins • Ann Jimerson • Hershel Lipow • Katherine Ramage • Susan Siegal • Paula Stanton
COLLABORATION
KIDS is eager to collaborate with other organizations with similar missions. We have teamed with these groups on grant-funded projects or other activities:
Bending the Arc Project • FHI 360 • Jefferson County Memorial Project • National Parks Conservation Association • Sandpiper Advisory Group
In 2021, KIDS initiated the Alabama History Coalition, with the aim of motivating Birmingham-area schools to prioritize the teaching of Alabama’s civil rights history. The Coalition has attracted additional Co-sponsors:
ACE–Alaquest Collaborative for Education • Bending the Arc Project • Birmingham Civil Rights Institute • Beth El Civil Rights Experience • FHI 360 • Magic City Poetry Festival • The Morgan Project • Pen America Birmingham • Sandpiper Advisory Group • The Story Acorn • Support the Vote Alabama • UAB School of Education • Vulcan Park & Museum