Date of Award
9-28-2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
History, MA
First Advisor
Dr. Cherisse Jones-Branch
Committee Members
Dr. Gary T. Edwards; Dr. Joseph P. Key
Call Number
LD 251 .A566t 2018 M37
Abstract
This work explores Arkansas Rosenwald Schools in rural African American communities from 1917-1924. Jim Crow laws governed the lives of black southerners throughout the region. Such laws unjustly marginalized them, their communities, and their schools. In 1868, Arkansas passed Act 52, which mandated segregated and unequal schools for black and white Arkansans. Black Arkansans, both children and adults, lacked educational opportunities, especially those residing in rural areas. African Americans, of all socioeconomic backgrounds, understood the importance of education. Education allowed black Arkansans to reshape their lives and futures. Much of this effort was aided by resources from the Rosenwald Fund. The Rosenwald Fund supported the construction of schools in rural black communities throughout Arkansas. The vast majority of these schools were built between 1917 and 1924, at a time when most rural blacks lacked access to educational facilities of any kind. These schools quickly became the pride of their communities because they were spaces where black educational attainment was cultivated and celebrated.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
McNutt, Chelsea Deserea, "Arkansas’s Rosenwald Schools 1917-1924" (2018). Student Theses and Dissertations. 493.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/493
