Green McAdoo opens exhibition on education of Black Tennesseans
This poster promotes a special display available for view- ing at the Green McAdoo Cultural Center in Clinton now through Sept. 13.
The exhibition, called “Building a Bright Future: Black Communities and Rosenwald Schools in Tennessee,” was created by the state museum in partnership with The John Hope and Aurelia E. Franklin Library at Fisk University.
According to an announcement, the exhibition “traces the history of education for Black Tennesseans from the Reconstruction period through the development of the Rosenwald program, and into the present day.” It opened on Aug. 1.
“We couldn’t be more excited to host this excellent travelling exhibit from the Tennessee State Museum,” said Adam Velk, director of the Green McAdoo center. “Getting an opportunity to tell these stories about what education means to a community is a joy.
“At the heart of our center’s story is the discussion about Black education, and this is just a natural extension of that.”
The release explains that what are commonly referred to as Rosenwald Schools were the result of an initial partnership between Sears, Roebuck, and Co. President Julius Rosenwald, Tuskegee Institute President Booker T. Washington, and Black communities throughout the South.
From 1912-1937, that partnership resulted in the construction of almost 5,000 schools for Black children across 15 Southern states, including 354 in Tennessee.
These so-called Rosenwald schools resulted in improved Black educational attainment and helped educate the generation who became leaders of the Civil Rights movement.
The traveling exhibition on display at the Green McAdoo center consists of five two-sided panels, and includes the stories of alumni and community members from 16 different Rosenwald Schools in Tennessee.
“[The Tennessee State Museum] and Fisk wanted to build a more-diverse and inclusive space for all Tennesseans to learn about and honor the history and legacy of Black education in the state,” said Debbie Shaw, senior curator of archaeology at the state museum.
“The resilience and perseverance of these Black communities as they strived for equal access to education is highlighted through their work with the Rosenwald School program,” she said. “The legacy continues today as members from these same groups work toward the preservation of these schools and communities.”
This display is an expansion of an initiative that included a 4,000-square-foot temporary exhibit at the Tennessee State Museum and a two-day symposium.
The project won a 2024 American Association for State and Local History Leadership in History Award of Excellence and the 2024 Tennessee Association of Museums President’s Award.
The Green McAdoo Cultural Center is a museum dedicated to telling the story of the Clinton 12, the courageous young black students who in August 1956 entered the front door of the previously all-white Clinton High School, making it the first desegregated public high school in the South.
The center, at 101 School St., includes a 1950s period classroom, videos, letters and historical artifacts.
Green McAdoo is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.