EFLAND, N.C. — Sankofa is a West African term that means to remember your African ancestry as you move forward in life. That's exactly what former schoolteacher Kamal Bell wanted to focus on when he opened Sankofa Farms.
Bell started Sankofa Farms in 2016 as a way to address issues that his students were not learning in the public school system, including critical thinking, career exploration and knowledge of their ancestry and who they want to be.
“The whole purpose of me starting the farm was me wanting to give back to the Black community,” Bell said. “My vision for the program was ultimately to create a space that centers on Black students' needs and address them. Being a former schoolteacher, I didn't feel like the school system always did that. So for me to create the program was to teach our youth agriculture from our perspective in a way that could help our community and be a viable career option if they still chose.”
By inviting a few of his former students to work at Sankofa, Bell has been able to turn the program into a mentorship opportunity. He's worked with four students at the farm so far.
“They have a special place in my heart,” Bell said. “I'm on call 24/7. So if they call me at 3 o'clock in the morning and I'm up, I pick up the phone.”
Mikal Ali has been coming out here for the past five years.
“Every time we come out here there's something to learn; there's something to get better at,” Ali said. “We're all students out here, even Mr. Bell.”
There's a lot of hard work involved with planting crops, taking care of beehives and building things for the farm. Bell says he couldn't run the farm without his students' help, and Ali says the mentorship he's gotten from Bell has been the best part of the experience.
“I learned how to critically think, and I think that's the most important part of what people should learn, especially when you're younger,” Ali said. “Because a lot of times you have people telling you what to do. And especially when you don't know who you are, then you just start to listen and imitate anything that people put around you.”
Ali is a high school junior, but since working with Bell, he has decided to work with kids in the juvenile system after he graduates college. He wants to start a learning center to help them develop life skills.
“The biggest thing I think I could pass on to them is ownership,” Bell said. “I didn't want them to be in a position where they are not in control of their destiny.”
Bell loves to watch his students grow up, and as his students say, “Once you're Sankofa, you're Sankofa for life.”
Bell is hoping to expand his Agricultural Academy next year by opening it up to more students. He hopes Sankofa Farms can become a model school and community building program to help nearby areas with similar challenges.
