Dunbar Elementary School (also known as Dunbar School) is an elementary school in Phoenix, Arizona that was once segregated.
| Dunbar Elementary School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
707 W. Grant St., Phoenix, Arizona | |
| Information | |
| Other name | Dunbar School Paul Dunbar Lawrence School[1] Paul Laurence Dunbar School[2] |
| School district | Phoenix Elementary School District |
| NCES District ID | 0406300[3] |
| NCES School ID | 040630000520[1] |
| Principal | Gina Millsaps |
| Grades | PK–8[1] |
Dunbar School | |
   | |
| Location | 707 W. Grant St., Phoenix, Arizona |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 33°26′26″N 112°05′04″W / 33.440443°N 112.084408°W |
| Built | 1925 |
| Architect | Fitzhugh & Byron |
| Architectural style | Second Renaissance Revival[4] |
| NRHP reference No. | 93000740 |
| Added to NRHP | August 12, 1993 |
History
editDunbar School was one of the first elementary schools built by Phoenix Elementary School District specifically for African-American students.[4] It is named after poet Paul Laurence Dunbar.[2][5]
While officials with the Dunbar School have labeled the school as a "historically Black school" during the era of segregation,[5] contemporary sources have described the school as a segregated school during the era.[2][6] At the time, segregation was optional for high schools in Arizona, but mandatory for elementary schools.[7] The school, along with Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington, were the three segregated elementary schools in Phoenix.[6]
By 1925, the school outgrew its two classrooms, and parents of those who attended the school demanded a new school, resulting in the construction of a one-story brick building.[2] The school's construction was funded with monies from a $650,000 bond issue that passed in 1924.[4]
Now, the school, like all schools in the United States following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling, is operated as an integrated institution.[citation needed]
The school was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1993,[4] and was added to the City of Phoenix's Historic Property Register in 2005.[8]
Student population
editIn the 2014–2015 school year, the school had a student population of 304, with an overwhelming majority of the students either classified as "Hispanics"[9] or African Americans.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Search for Public Schools - Paul Dunbar Laurence School (040630000520)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ a b c d Creno, Cathryn (1 July 2014). "17 historic schools in metro Phoenix". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Phoenix Elementary District". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ a b c d "National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet for Dunbar School". National Register of Historic Places. 1993. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ a b "Black History Month at Dunbar School". Dunbar Elementary School. Phoenix Elementary School District. 21 February 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ a b "Staff Report: Z-72-16-8" (PDF). City of Phoenix. 10 November 2016. p. 3. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ Finn, Elizabeth (July 1998). "The Struggle for Civil Rights in Arizona". State Bar of Arizona. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
At mid-century, state law mandated segregation in the elementary schools but made it optional in the high schools.
- ^ "Phoenix Historic Property Register" (PDF). City of Phoenix. May 2017. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 December 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ See Hispanic–Latino naming dispute for details of an ongoing dispute on the naming of US inhabitants who are of Latin American or Spanish origin.