Our Impact

In 1962 the origins of Plainview AHEAD started with a hand full of ladies from different churches in the Austin Height neighborhood called the Adult Women’s Study Group. One of the objectives of the group was the raise money for scholarships so that the graduating students from the Austin Heights neighborhood could go to college.

For several years after it began in ‘62 the group continued to raise money for scholarships and made various donations to other worthy causes, but there were other needs in the community that needed to be met.

The Plainview Black Awareness organization began in 1987 when Romey and Clarice Fennell stopped at the home of Leanna McCutcheon during a walk in the neighborhood and the conversation turned to Black History Month and King's birthday.

The three leaders of the local black community decided a celebration was in order and the planning began. Elder Walter Jackson contacted church pastors and agreed to serve as chairman, and Clarice Fennell presented the idea to the Adult Women's Study group.

From their dream for a black awareness celebration, the first event was held on Feb. 21, 1988, at United Baptist Church. Since its inception in 1988, Plainview Black Awareness events have been run by volunteers, as well as being privately funded through donations.

Continuing education has always been the main focal point of the Adult Women’s Group and it continued with the formation of Black Awareness. But it was carried even further in 1995 with the help of Drs. John and Dorothy Long, in 1996 by Elder Walter Jackson and in 1998 by Romey Fennell. And with that help, additional Scholarships have been established that bear the name of those donors.

In 2018, 30 years since Black Awareness was created, the new Committee voted to take the mission even higher, by changing the name from Black Awareness to Plainview Austin Heights Empowerment and Development (Plainviewahead) and incorporating. Now the organization is a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit and they work even harder to meet the needs of the community and surrounding areas that they serve.