In January 2024, during a research trip to Boston, MA, I visited the North Bennet Street School, often celebrated as the first traditional trade school in the U.S. A plaque at the original site highlights its historical significance, yet a deeper story lies beneath. While North Bennet emphasized skill-building and community, earlier institutions—like manual training schools and Indigenous boarding schools—often served as tools of industrial conformity and cultural erasure. This contrast compels us to ask: Whose histories do we celebrate, and whose are overlooked? The raven offers a powerful lens for questioning these narratives. Revered in Black and Indigenous cultures, the raven symbolizes wisdom, transformation, and survival. For African and African American traditions, the raven carries messages of freedom and resilience, representing both hardship and triumph. In Indigenous storytelling, the raven is a trickster and creator, uncovering hidden truths. These cultural connections make the raven an apt guide for examining the complexities of history. With the raven’s 10,000-foot gaze, we can ask: Who benefited from early trade schools? How did race, class, and gender shape access? By interrogating the plaque at North Bennet, we honor the resilience of marginalized communities and ensure their stories are woven into the broader history of education.