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Madeline Dort graduated from William & Mary in 2023. As an undergraduate student, she worked as a Bray School Lab student thought partner conducting research for the lab. Madeline describes her experiences as a William & Mary student, her activities as a student and her volunteer experience with Colonial Williamsburg. She also discusses her role and projects as a student thought partner at the lab under the direction of lab director Maureen Elgersman Lee and lab assistant Nicole Brown. William & Mary student Madeline Dort describes her experience working as a Student Thought Partner with the Bray School Lab. She also discusses her experiences as a historic interpreter and her reflections on race and education.

Elizabeth Drembus is a genealogist who has previously worked for DAR and on the Virginia Theological Seminary reparations project. For the VTS project, she helped locate the descendants of the enslaved persons who worked for the seminary. Elizabeth Drembus describes her work locating the descendants of the known Bray students. She also discusses her methodology and her engagement with the descendant community, her colloboration with the Bray School Lab staff and her hopes for the site when it opens in September 2024 at Colonial Williamsburg. Elizabeth Drembus discusses her methodology in searching for the descendants of the known Bray scholars. She also discusses the work the lab is doing to engage with the descendant community.

Michael Druitt is an associate professor of Biological Sciences at Hampton University and identifies as a descendant community member for the Williamsburg Bray School. Michael discusses his family history and his ties to the descendant community for the Williamsburg Bray School. Michael reflects on the importance of education for the black community and the legacy of the Bray School in his family's history. Michael Druitt explains the importance of the Bray School legacy for himself and the black community, and the importance of learning about the history of those who forged a path for others to follow.

Stephanie is a resident of James City County and a member of the Williamsburg Bray School Descendant Community. Stephanie learned about the Williamsburg Bray School and moved back to Williamsburg from New York to explore the history and legacy of the school. Stephanie attended James City County schools as a young child before moving to New York. Stephanie Dunmore is exploring her roots and researching the connection between Dunmore's Proclamation of 1765 and her deceased husband's surname.

Latricia Cooke Eason is a member of the Williamsburg Bray School descendant community and a family researcher currently working on a book about her research. Latricia describes her experience growing up in the Williamsburg area and her current efforts to record her family's histories. She reflects on the work that William & Mary and Colonial Williamsburg are doing to tell a fuller story of the experience of African Americans in the Tidewater area. Latricia explains why black history is important and why we need to keep telling the stories of those who have gone before us and sacrificed for their descendants.

Dawn Edmiston is a professor of Marketing at William & Mary and a Strategic Cultural Partnerships Faculty Fellow. Dawn describes her journey to William & Mary and her desire to work with Strategic Cultural Partnerships to advance the story of the Williamsburg Bray School. Dawn discusses how her marketing program to leverage William & Mary's assets to benefit programs like the Williamsburg Bray School.

Rex Ellis is the former Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) at the Smithsonian Institution. Prior to this position, Dr. Ellis was the first African American Vice President for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, where he managed all programs and operations. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University, a Masters in Fine Arts from Wayne State University, a Masters of Divinity from Virginia Union University, and an Ed.D from the College of William and Mary. He is the author of two books, Beneath the Blazing Sun: Stories from the African American Journey, and With a Banjo on My Knee, which chronicles the history of black banjo players from the time of slavery to the present. Dr. Ellis describes his youth and growing up in the Tidewater area of VA and his path to becoming a director at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, followed by the National Museum of African American History and Culture. He gives his insight into the importance of telling the story of the contributions of African Americans. Dr. Rex Ellis discusses the first educated Africans at William & Mary, menservants who accompanied their masters and later taught eachother the rudiments of education.

Eliza Fernandez is a recent graduate of William & Mary and an oral history intern with the CHiP 2024 summer internship. Eliza discusses her experience learning oral history methodology with the William & Mary Bray School Lab and how her experience at William & Mary has shaped her future. Eliza discusses her experiences attending Descendants Day at both James Monroe's Highland and Stratford Hall with members of the descendant community.

Cliff Fleet is the President & CEO of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, and an alumni of William & Mary. He headed Philip Morris before retiring to lead the foundation in its motto "that the future may learn from the past." He was born in Charlottesville, Virginia and attended William & Mary where he received his master's degree and is also a faculty member. Cliff Fleet describes the genesis of the Williamsburg Bray School Initiative, a project that involved both the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and William & Mary. Once the building determined to the Williamsburg Bray School was identified, he convened the initiative where William & Mary would do the research and Colonial Williamsburg would engage in the restoration of the building. He also discusses the engagement with the descendant community that was imperative for the success of the project. He discusses the future of the Bray School and the African Baptist Meeting House on Nassau Street. President Cliff Fleet discusses the Bray School Initiative, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and the "power of place" in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Jack Gary is the Executive Director of Archaeology for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Jack Gary details his path to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, his experience prior to his current role, and the different projects he has worked on with the Foundation, including the African Baptist Meetinghouse and the Williamsburg Bray School. Jack details the day he found intact burials at the site of the first Baptist Church on Nassau Street in Colonial Williamsburg, and his efforts to contact the descendant community first when the discovery was made.