Norwich — Otis Library will explore the theme of access to education as a force for liberation throughout April, with a series of programs and a display highlighting Norwich natives Sarah and Mary Harris, students at Prudence Crandall’s school for African-American girls in Canterbury in 1833-34.

Throughout April, items on loan from the Prudence Crandall Museum will be on display in the Otis Library atrium display cases. Text on the history of the school will be displayed in the second-floor community room.

While Crandall is celebrated in Connecticut as the state heroine, less recognized are the black students who assumed enormous risk to receive an elite education. Historical records indicate that Sarah Harris had made repeated requests to attend classes at what started as an all-white student school. And when Crandall admitted the girl in 1832, white students withdrew from the academy, and Crandall opened it as an all-black girls school in 1833.

This is the second year that Otis has collaborated with the Crandall museum for programs on the heroic and controversial school that was forced to close under threats and opposition.

Four programs during April will focus on the Harris sisters and other students at the Crandall school, as well as other education access themes. On April 14, Jennifer Rycenga, a professor of comparative religions, will speak about her research on the students who attended Crandall’s school, including the Harris sisters. Rycenga is working on a book about the students.

Faye Ringel, a retired U.S. Coast Guard Academy English professor, will speak on April 21 about education pioneer Lydia Huntley Sigourney, 1791-1865. Sigourney was an early advocate of education for the deaf and one of the first teachers at the American School for the Deaf.

All programs are free and open to the public and do not require registration.

Sign language interpretation will be available if requested one week prior to each event. Descriptive tours of the exhibit will also be available upon request. Contact Elanah Sherman at (860) 614-7200 or by email at elanahs@gmail.com for interpretation or descriptive tours.

Programs in the Otis Library Access to Education series:

Friday April 6, 6-8 p.m.: Opening of the student art exhibit “My Teacher Taught Me ...” in the Millie and Martin Shapiro Community Room. Children from preschool through fifth grade will exhibit art — paintings, drawings, collages and assemblages — that illustrates an important lesson or skill learned from a teacher. The guest speaker will be Norwich resident Lottie Scott, who will present monologues based on her childhood in South Carolina. The exhibit will be on display during the month of April.

Saturday, April 14, 1 p.m. in the community room: professor Jennifer Rycenga will give a talk on the history of the Prudence Crandall school, with an emphasis on the black students, including the Harris sisters of Norwich. Rycenga is finishing a comprehensive cultural biography of Prudence Crandall (1803-90), including information about her students.

Saturday, April 21, 1 p.m. in the story room: Retired professor Faye Ringel will give a talk on Norwich native Lydia Huntley Sigourney, a well-known writer of her time with a deep commitment to the education of girls, including African-American, Native American and deaf children. Sigourney never abandoned her passion for deaf education, remaining a supporter of the nation’s first school for deaf children, in Hartford, until her death.

Saturday, April 28, 1 p.m. in the community room: Students from the Norwich Free Academy will present a variety of spoken word performances — reminiscence, monologue, poetry — on the intertwining themes of education and liberation.

The events are sponsored by The Elsie Brown Fund. For more information, contact Julie Menders, community engagement and adult programing coordinator, at (860) 889-2365, ext. 128. Otis Library is located at 261 Main St., Norwich and is accessible to people with disabilities.

c.bessette@theday.com