With this series, the DC History Center highlights some of our frontline and behind-the-scenes collaborators by asking them 7 Questions. For this next blog, the DC History Center met with McKinley Technology High School librarian Juan Samperio.
What brought you to Washington, DC?
I’m originally from Mexico City, but I grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s a desert with a lot of casinos; it’s just a different culture out there that didn’t align with my personal interests. DC has so much to offer though–history, museums, volunteer opportunities, and interesting events.
In Las Vegas, I worked as an interpreter for the police department. I also started my career as a teacher out there, but I didn’t see myself staying in Nevada long term. When I moved to Washington, I knew it was a place I could settle into the community, culture, and all of the opportunities. It’s amazing how much you can learn about this city through free programming and events.
What has your career been like?
Before my current position, I taught middle school Spanish, and then I taught elementary school for about eight years. I also taught in Japan for a couple of years. Before that, as I mentioned, I worked with the police department, and had several other jobs.
Now, I’m McKinley Tech High School’s librarian. This is my fourth year in this school, which I feel really fortunate about since it’s such a beautiful space with so much history.
I ended up in libraries because Aleah–who happened to be my student for first, third, and fourth grades–suggested that I should become a librarian. When I asked her why, she said “you know a lot of random stuff.” I thought the idea was funny and sweet coming from the mind of a third grader. I would always take my students to the library, and the next year when Aleah was in fourth grade, she would ask me if I was the librarian yet. She insisted I needed to become a librarian to share all of my knowledge with other students.
Since the particular school I taught in didn’t have a library, I always loved taking my students to the Shaw Neighborhood Library. There, I showed them how to use library resources and how to start their own research. To me, it was important to teach the kids that libraries are a place we can all go to learn and find information.
After a while, I looked into library school programs for my master’s degree and eventually attended Syracuse University. I always thank my student Aleah for inspiring this career path.
How did you first get involved with the DC History Center?
I received an email invitation to participate in the D.C. Declaration of Learning (D.C. DOL) program, which is a five-day immersive teacher professional development program put on by local cultural heritage organizations, like the DC History Center. When I signed up two years ago to be a part of D.C. DOL, I ended up using a lot of the DC History Center’s resources for my project, which focused on McKinley Tech history. It was just an easy path to the DC History Center from there.
Education trends towards experiential learning, project-based learning, and for history, object-based learning–the DC History Center is a fantastic place to find all of those resources! After I visited the DC History Center’s Kiplinger Research Library, I started to send your Research Guides and Educational Resources to some of my peers because I knew it would be useful for them. Creating lesson plans can be painful, even for teachers who know how to do it, so those free LibGuides provide a good base to start.
What has been the most meaningful thing about engaging with the DC History Center?
I’m working on developing a school museum at McKinley Tech, and I used some images from the DC History Center collections to engage my students. I formed a historians club for students who were interested in learning more about the school itself. I wanted to make those historical connections, because you never know who ended up coming from your school; for example, McKinley Tech stems from Cardozo Senior High School, where Marvin Gaye attended. I started to bring up yearbooks from previous years, and we do have other famous musicians, artists, athletes, and people who graduated from McKinley.
American photographer Joe Rosenthal, who received the Pulitzer Prize for his 1945 photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, went to McKinley Tech. Everyone knows that image, but maybe not the McKinley Tech alum behind the camera. It’s about making those connections between history and yourself–you’re a part of that history too. The personal ties have made a big difference in the exhibit.
Anne, DC History Center’s Deputy Director, offered me two display cases so we could mount our exhibition. That made a huge difference because my students were able to put items inside the cases. They handled objects–yearbooks from 1910, 1917, the 40s, and 50s; a card from a World Series baseball player in the Hall of Fame. My students selected the items they wanted to display, and in the process, we discovered more history. The cases made a significant impact in the way we engaged with DC history, and the DC History Center. I feel lucky that Anne offered those display cases–not just because those helped for the project–but because I felt more active in the DC history community.
If you could change how Washingtonians engage with our community’s history, what would it be?
I’ve been thinking a lot about this question because DC has become a transient city. There’s a lot of people living in the city, but there’s a lot of people coming and going. When I first moved to DC eleven years ago, I wasn’t sure if I would end up staying or leaving. If you’re living here for whatever amount of time, you should learn more about the community’s history. I love those DC’s Neighborhood Heritage Trails signs and the Art on Call project. Not everyone engages with those things as they’re walking down the street, but those projects make a difference in teaching people about their home.
The culture of Washington has been overshadowed by gentrification. There’s some erasure happening because some don’t know our history. Tourists also don’t know our history, since they don’t always leave the downtown and National Mall area. We need more engagement from everyone–people who live here and people who will come back to visit or live in DC in the future.
What is something you learned about DC history through your time with the collections and those researching among them?
I love looking at the DC History Center’s maps. It’s interesting to see how neighborhoods change over time, especially for my students and their families who are often born and raised in DC. It’s hard that sometimes you have to dig for histories, as opposed to being more open with what happened in the past, because students can easily imagine what used to be there. Learning about DC history through maps makes you want to go walk down those streets and just learn a little more about it.
Yearbooks are another great resource; I learn so much DC history from them all the time. I flipped through a McKinley Tech yearbook the other day and found James Ray, who was a musician in the early 1960s. He recorded the original version of “Got My Mind Set on You,” which George Harrison later covered. When I tell my kids that, they say “wait, what” and get all excited. It’s really cool to see the impact this has on my students, and that they’re inspired to do their own research.
What would you like people to know about the DC History Center?
That it’s above the [Apple] store! People are missing an opportunity; it’s a beautiful space. People should learn more about the Carnegie Library building itself. They should know about all of the educational resources, and that the DC History Center does field trips!
The DC History Center is more than just a beautiful building though; it’s something you can engage with. Everyone should visit!
If you are interested in receiving the education newsletter or learning more about our educational programs, resources, or field trips, please contact Domonique Spear at education@dchistory.org. This interview was conducted, condensed, and edited by Kate Morgan.