Bonita Joyce started organizing around community education when she came to the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill as a freshman. She became involved with a group of students interested in creating a community-based program about Black history and culture. In 1992 the group formed the Communiversity Youth Program, a Saturday school aimed to educate, empower and expose youth to different aspects of African American culture and history. Through her involvement with the program, Ms. Joyce learned more about the lack of quality education for Black kids in Chapel Hill. She continued her push to empower local youth after graduating, and accepted a position at Hargraves Community Center running the after school program. Ms. Joyce partnered with Danita Mason-Hogans to run an academic-based after school program aimed at supporting the youth through study help, field trips, and other enrichment. Through the years, she has continued pushing to improve and expand the educational experience for Black kids in Chapel Hill.
Ms. Joyce shares her work on Communiversity:
Interviews conducted by Danita Mason-Hogans at Chapel Hill Public Library, 2019