A FREE Symposium will be held on Friday, September 15 and Saturday, September 16 at two locations. Presented in a Partnership by the Tennessee State Museum and Fisk University, and in conjunction with the Tennessee State Museum (TSM) exhibition, the Symposium, entitled “Building Community, Continuing the Legacy: A Rosenwald Schools of Tennessee” will begin at Noon on Friday at Fisk University and continue on Saturday at TSM. Register online at Eventbrite now, free, by following the link on the TSM website: tnmuseum.org.
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. Between 1912-1937, that partnership resulted in the construction of almost 5,000 schools for Black children across 15 southern states, including 354 in Tennessee. Rosenwald schools drove improvement in Black educational attainment and helped educate the generation who became leaders of the Civil Rights movement.
Rosenwald School alumni, historians and the public are invited to this free two-day event, exploring the history and legacy of the schools and the communities that built and preserved them. The symposium is designed to support the TSM exhibition “Building a Bright Future: Black Communities and Rosenwald School in Tennessee,” which runs through February 25, 2024.
The Symposium opens Friday at Fisk with a Welcome Reception, Lunch, & Opening Remarks from Community Partners from 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 pm. Session 1: Community Curation and Digitization at 2:00 p.m. by Dr. Doretha Williams | National Museum of African American History and Culture (Smithsonian) and Dr. Jocelyn Imani | National Director for the Black History and Culture program at Trust for Public Land. Session 2: Fisk Presentation of Online Database Archives runs until the Alumni Reception at Fisk University from 4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, September 16, at Tennessee State Museum, a Reception with Tea, Coffee, and Pastries begins at 9:00 a.m., Welcome and Opening Remarks at 9:30 a.m. Session 1: History of Rosenwald Schools in Tennessee at 9:40 a.m. by Dr. Mary Hoffschwelle, MTSU and Jo Ann McClellan, African American Heritage Society of Maury County until 10:50. Session 2: Rosenwald School and Alumni Resources Across Tennessee begins at 11:00, presented by Linda Wynn, Tennessee Historical Commission; Ben Nance, TN Division of Archaeology; and Dr. Carroll Van West, MTSU Center for Historic Preservation.
Box Lunches are available for purchase for Lunch. At 1:30 p.m. Keynote Session 3: Legacy & Community: Panel Discussion of Alumni Experiences. Concluding Remarks at 3:00 p.m. with Self-Guided Visit of Exhibition at 3:30 p.m.
Admission and parking are free to TSM, 1000 Rosa L. Parks Blvd., at the corner of Rosa L. Parks Blvd. and Jefferson Street, next to Nashville Farmers’ Market and Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park. The Museum is open Tuesday – Saturday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.; Closed Mondays, New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
