LUNCH & LEARN: Remembering Our Schools

12:30 p.m. Wednesday, February 15, 2023

For much of American History, the majority of the Black population was prohibited from learning to read or write. During Reconstruction, southern states created the first public schools for the formerly enslaved, and in the 1920s, Julius Rosenwald, a former Sears, Roebuck and Co. president, contributed $4.3 million to build more than 5,000 schools across the South for African American students. In 1965, Isle of Wight County began the desegregation of its education system, 11 years after the Supreme Court outlawed segregation in public schools. Today, the Schoolhouse Museum shares the journey of Black education in Isle of Wight County with visitors from all over the U.S. Today's lecture – Remembering Our School - will focus on this history.

Today’s presentation is hosted by The Schoolhouse Museum, and the lecturer is Cassandra L. Newby-Alexander, Ph.D., Endowed Professor of Virginia Black History and Culture and Emeritus Director of Joseph Jenkins Roberts Center for African Diaspora Studies at Norfolk State University, Norfolk, Va. A small reception will follow the program.

Event held at the Isle of Wight County Museum, 103 Main Street, Smithfield, Va. For more information, hwww.theschoolhousemuseum.org or www.historicisleofwight.com. 757-356-1223.