Strafford News

How does New Hampshire, a state with the motto “Live Free or Die,” confront and understand its participation in slavery, segregation, and the neglect of Black history? What happens to our identity as residents of this state and as New Englanders when we begin to acknowledge our past? Shadows Fall North, a film attempts to answer those questions and more. A viewing of the short film will be followed by a panel discussion and Q&A will follow.

Moderator:

Selina Choate '07 COLA, '15 GRAD, Director, McNair Scholars Program

Selina Choate earned her B.A. in Psychology and later went on to obtain a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of New Hampshire (UNH). She has worked for the university’s Office of First Year Programs for six consecutive years and served as the Liberty Mutual Sponsored Diversity Network Program for five years. Prior to working at UNH, she served as a Staff Assistant and Outreach Representative in Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter’s constituent services office. Selina brings a wealth of knowledge from the non-profit industry. She served on two state boards and served as the Treasurer for the Manchester NAACP, unit 2069. She is a past co-chair of the President’s Commission on the status of People of Color, an advisor for NALA, the support group for women of color at UNH, and the advisor for Delta Xi Phi, Multicultural Sorority, Inc.

Panelists:

JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director, Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire JerriAnne is the executive director of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, the founder and director of The Harriet Wilson Project; and the previous Director of Diversity Programs & Community Outreach at the University of New Hampshire. JerriAnne was named one of 25 Extraordinary Women of Southern New Hampshire by the Nashua Telegraph in 2015; named the 2017 Freedom Fighter by Seacoast NAACP and in 2015, she was named by the New Hampshire Humanities Council as one of the 40 most influential New Hampshirites who have vastly enriched human understanding. In 2022 UNH honored here with the Granite State Award for contributions to the state of New Hampshire.  

Dariya Steele '23 COLA, Senior Fellow, COLA and Black Heritage Trail Intern

Dariya Steele is a Senior Fellow in the College of Liberal Arts at the University of New Hampshire. She will graduate this spring with a B.A. in Anthropology and a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies. She interned at the Seacoast African American Cultural Center under Professor Casey Golomski, where she guided quests through the museum and created an educational program about Martin Luther King Jr. She is currently interning at the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire in Portsmouth, where she is being trained as a tour guide, assisting with research and creating several On The Trail videos. After graduation Dariya wants to pursue a master's degree in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Leadership. 

Honorable David H. Watters, New Hampshire State Senator and UNH Professor Emeritus

 Senator David Watters has served five terms in the New Hampshire Senate, working on various committees, including Education, Energy and Natural Resources, Transportation, Capital Budget, and Executive Departments and Administration. He also serves on policy commissions on environmental, transportation, education, historical resources, and recovery. As a professor at the University of New Hampshire for 39 years, David taught courses on New Hampshire and New England literature, history, and culture, and he was the Director of the Center for New England Culture. As a founding member of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, he was project humanist for the feature-length film, Shadows Fall North, wrote and narrated the Concord Black Heritage Tour film, and was featured in New Hampshire Public Radio’s film series on New Hampshire Black History. He has served on the boards of the New Hampshire Historical Society, New Hampshire Humanities, Dover Adult Learning Center, The Robert Frost Farm Homestead, and Pontine Movement Theatre. 

Original source can be found here.