On Sunday July 12^th at 4 p.m., the documentary “In Their Own Words: A History of Harbison Institute” will be shown on South Carolina’s Educational Television Network. 

The 27 minute documentary combines interviews of eleven alumni who attended the African American school between 1920 and 1940.  Located in Irmo, South Carolina, the school was funded by the Presbyterian Church in Pennsylvania.

Using archival footage from South Carolina Newsfilm Library, the film includes sections of an interview with Harold Boulware, a Harbison graduate and one the chief attorneys in Briggs vs. Elliot (later consolidated into Brown vs. the Board of Education.) Historical photos were obtained from the South Caroliniana Library and the Presbyterian Historical Society, as well as from the alumni themselves.

The documentary combines research conducted by faculty members from several colleges and universities: Dr. Bobby Donaldson (History, USC Main Campus) and Dr. Howard Kingkade (English and Speech, USC Lancaster), as well as Dr. Randy Lee (History, Columbia College) and Dr. Reid Holland (History, Midlands Technical College). Lisa Martin-Stuart, Associate Department Chair of Theatre and Dance at USC, costumed the reenactment scene in the film. The documentary was directed by Helen Baldwin Kingkade (MTC Theatre/Speech/USC adjunct). It was funded by grants from the South Carolina Humanities Council.