Education
While a member of the board she served on a variety of committees, including normal, high, and manual training; school gardens; playgrounds and special schools; libraries and lectures; and awards and prizes. Because of the unique nature of the government in the District, Terrell testified before Congress many times in her capacity as a board member. She was instrumental in getting the Board to honor the life and work of Frederick B. Douglass by declaring his birthday February 14th as "Douglass Day" in the schools.
Terrell also found ways to teach outside of traditional school settings. She capitalized on opportunities to share information about history and culture, seizing on “teachable moments,” including her position as a member of the Committee of the D.C. George Washington Bicentennial Commission, honoring the birth of the first president of the United States. In 1932, as part of the celebration she wrote a pageant about one of her lifelong heroes, Phillis Wheatley. Wheatley, the first published female African American poet, dedicated and sent a poem to Washington, who not only replied, but met with Wheatley. Pageants were popular during the Harlem Renaissance; W.E.B. DuBois, author of The Star of Ethiopia, was a passionate advocate for the genre as a vehicle helping “colored” people learn about, appreciate, and become proud of their African heritage. This play represents the culmination of many of Terrell’s interests and talents - love of writing, history, poetry, and a desire to educate and to celebrate the achievements of “colored” women in America.
Terrell's most significant contribute to for children can be summed up in one word: kindergarten. Under her leadership, the National Association for Colored Women made it a mission to establish kindergartens in as many communities as possible. Terrell clearly understood the importance and value of free, high quality early childhood education and her talking points on the subject are valid still.