It was truly memorable! That is how I would describe the presentation about Rosenwald Schools to the “Lunch ‘n Learn” group at Christ Church in downtown Raleigh last week.
Julius Rosenwald, the President of Sears and Roebuck, established a fund in the 1910-1930 era to build schools in the South for black children (the schools for black children were deplorable). Local communities raised money to match Rosenwald’s contribution. Schools were built using uniform building plans that had exacting details. During the life of the program, over 5,000 schools were built in the South. At one time 1 out of every 3 black children in the South attended a Rosenwald school.
What Rosenwald did was truly memorable but what made this presentation memorable was the fact that four members of the audience had actually attended Rosenwald Schools. I asked these folks to share their experiences in attending a Rosenwald School. And that is what made the presentation memorable.
