Their Highest Potential : An African American School Community in the Segregated South

The history of the public schooling of African Americans during legalized segregation has focused almost exclusively on the inferior education that African American students received. In the national memory, African Americans have been victims of Whites who questioned the utility of providing Blacks with anything more than a rudimentary education and who grossly underfunded that education. In truth, the memory of the inequality of resources is not inaccurate, but recalling segregated schools only through their poor resources presents a historically incomplete picture. Some evidence suggests that the environment of the segregated school had affective traits, institutional policies, and community support that helped black children learn in spite of the neglect of their schools by white school boards. This look at one particular segregated school from the emic perspective begins with a community's evaluation of its former school. The focus is on the Caswell County Training School in the Piedmont area of North Carolina. The first three chapters consider the historic relationship between the community and the school, and later chapters explore the ways in which the school demonstrated its commitment to the students it served. The effects of desegregation and events of the last decade are also evaluated. (Contains 6 tables, 19 photographs, 1 map, and a bibliography of 4 collections, 52 interviews, and 80 printed sources.) (SLD) African American Schools In The Segregated South Faced Enormous Obstacles In Educating Their Students. But Some Of These Schools Succeeded In Providing Nurturing Educational Environments In Spite Of The Injustices Of Segregation. Vanessa Siddle Walker Tells The Story Of One Such School In Rural North Carolina, The Caswell County Training School, Which Operated From 1934 To 1969. She Focuses Especially On The Importance Of Dedicated Teachers And The Principal, Who Believed Their Jobs Extended Well Beyond The Classroom, And On The Community's Parents, Who Worked Hard To Support The School. According To Walker, The Relationship Between School And Community Was Mutually Dependent. Parents Sacrificed Financially To Meet The School's Needs, And Teachers And Administrators Put In Extra Time For Professional Development, Specialized Student Assistance, And Home Visits. The Result Was A School That Placed The Needs Of African American Students At The Center Of Its Mission, Which Was In Turn Shared By The Community. Walker Concludes That The Experience Of Ccts Captures A Segment Of The History Of African Americans In Segregated Schools That Has Been Overlooked And That Provides Important Context For The Ongoing Debate About How Best To Educate African American Children. - Publisher. Remembering The Good -- Couple Of Three Years Ago -- Plot Thickens -- Working Together -- Meeting Needs -- We Are Family -- Their Highest Potential -- Standing On Moving Ground -- No Poverty Of Spirit. Vanessa Siddle Walker. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 247-253) And Index. African American schools in the segregated South faced enormous obstacles in educating their students. But some of these schools succeeded in providing nurturing educational environments in spite of the injustices of segregation. Vanessa Siddle Walker tells the story of one such school in rural North Carolina, the Caswell County Training School, which operated from 1934 to 1969. She focuses especially on the importance of dedicated teachers and the principal, who believed their jobs extended well beyond the classroom, and on the community's parents, who worked hard to support the school. According to Walker, the relationship between school and community was mutually dependent. Parents sacrificed financially to meet the school's needs, and teachers and administrators put in extra time for professional development, specialized student assistance, and home visits. The result was a school that placed the needs of African American students at the center of its mission, which was in turn shared by the community. Walker concludes that the experience of CCTS captures a segment of the history of African Americans in segregated schools that has been overlooked and that provides important context for the ongoing debate about how best to educate African American children. African American History/Education/North Carolina Recounts the history of one African-American school in the segregated American South which succeeded in providing nurturing educational environments in spite of the injustices of segregation. The book focuses on the importance of dedicated teachers and the principal and parents.