BCA Career Spotlight: Learning and Engagement Manager
“Speak up for yourself”
Spotlight on: Dr Ayshah Johnston
The V&A, Transport Museum, National Trust, and Brixton Windmill are all places our Engagement and Learning manager, Dr Ayshah Johnston, worked at before coming to Black Cultural Archives in January 2019. She obtained the role on her second attempt after acquiring schools experience and plugging the gap on her resume that prohibited her from landing the role the first time.
Ayshah’s resilience and perseverance and her description of how she came to be into her line of work: 'by accident and back to front' are important anecdotes for young professionals who may feel pressure to have their career trajectory figured out and may not be prepared for the knock backs that are part for the course. Ayshah’s advice to young professionals, particularly those from Black and global majority backgrounds seeking to enter the arts and culture sector is: ‘speak up for yourself’ if you suspect you are being taken advantage of and/or your career is being stalled, whether deliberately or inadvertently. She seeks to remind them that though the field is not as diverse and inclusive as it should be, individuals and organisations are willing to help them find their way.
Black Cultural Archives is one such organisation, and Ayshah’s favourite part of working in a majority Black organisation is that she can ‘relax’, ‘be herself’ and focus on the job at hand instead of having to expend mental energy protecting herself and proving she is qualified to be in the role, as has been her experience in other places.
A typical day in the role depends on the season. The proximity to Black History Month and the anniversary of the Windrush docking are when people are more likely to engage with Black history and thus the archives, but approximately 75% of Ayshah’s time is spent on public engagement and the delivery of workshops for all ages, from primary school through to corporate staff groups. Shortly, the plan is to hire freelance educators who can carry out school delivery and output, leaving time for Ayshah to focus on strategic planning, departmental development and academic research.
Ayshah’s passion for telling stories about Black history is palpable, and it is no wonder that she still relishes witnessing the looks of awe and shock on people's faces when they learn of things they did not know before. It is also of no surprise that she is busy creating hireable resources such as pop-ups and panels for individuals and organisations to access Black history, even when she and her team cannot go and tell the stories personally.
Engaging and informing the public about the discoveries of scientist, poet and linguist Lewis Latimer has been Ayshah’s favourite project in her role so far and one of the first opportunities she had to put on a family event, given the pandemic and the period of recovery arts and heritage organisations underwent in its aftermath. Latimer, though American, had a local link as his lights were installed on Electric Avenue in Brixton and had a major impact on London. He is yet to take up his place among the pantheon of Victorian inventors, but if anybody can ensure his inclusion and challenge the limiting beliefs about Black people and Black history Dr Ayshah Johnston can.
Schools: Seeing Ourselves Workshops
Did you know that we offer interactive 'Seeing Ourselves Workshops' aimed at raising career aspirations in the arts for children in Key Stage 1? Explore different roles in the arts and heritage sector with associated characters 5-7 year olds might better relate to:
Conservator (Superhero), Archivist (Explorer), Curator (Storyteller) and Artist (Spy).