Plaisance School is a school, established in 1921, in Plaisance, Louisiana, United States. The school was segregated during the Jim Crow-era and served African American students.[2] It also went by the names Plaisance High School, and Plaisance Rosenwald School.[3][1]
Plaisance School | |
Plaisance Rosenwald School
Plaisance High School | |
 | |
| Location | 3264 LA 167, Plaisance, Louisiana, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 30°37′07″N 92°07′57″W / 30.618611°N 92.1325°W |
| Built | 1921 |
| NRHP reference No. | 04000080 |
| Added to NRHP | August 23, 2004[1] |
The Plaisance School has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2004, for the school's contribution to educational history and Black ethnic heritage.[1][4] A historical marker commemorates the school history.[5][6]
The Plaisance School is one of very few surviving Rosenwald Schools still actively being used as a school building,[1] and now serves as Plaisance Elementary School.
History
editThe Plaisance School was built in 1921 as Rosenwald School.[7] The building housed 160 students in grades one through six, seven, or eight,[1][8] during the period from 1920 to 1953.[1] Up until the 1960s, the Plaisance School was the only school for African American students in the community.[1] Only 393 Rosenwald Schools were built in Louisiana (between 1914 and 1932), and only two still exist in recognizable form; only one, the Plaisance School, remains on its original site.[1]
Merline Pitre, is an alumna and taught French at the school.[9]
Modern history
editPlaisance High School was consolidated into Northwest High School in 1991, and the Rosenwald building (one of several buildings on the campus) now serves as Plaisance Elementary School. Opelousas students in grades five through eight take classes in the historical classrooms.[10] In 2017, the school reopened after suffering damages in a flood and, in early 2022, plans to restore and repair the historic Rosenwald structure were set into motion.[11][12] On November 12, 2022, those plans came to fruition and a dedication ceremony was held at the school building to commemorate the completion of the building’s renovation.[13]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h "Plaisance School". National Register Of Historic Places Nomination Form. August 23, 2004. Archived from the original on February 19, 2024. Retrieved February 19, 2024.
- ^ "Plaisance High School, Plaisance, LA". African American High Schools in Louisiana Before 1970. November 2, 2019.
- ^ "Plaisance School". Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation.
- ^ "Plaisance School". NPGallery, Digital Asset Management System.
- ^ "Plaisance School". Read the Plaque.
- ^ "Plaisance School Historical Marker". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
- ^ "Plaisance High School". African American School Building Revival. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
- ^ "Plaisance School". Read the Plaque.
- ^ "Merline Pitre's Biography". The HistoryMakers.
- ^ "Plaisance High School – 1 of the 2 Last Remaining Rosenwald Schools in Louisiana". African American High Schools in Louisiana Before 1970. January 23, 2018.
- ^ Ardoin, Bobby (October 20, 2017). "Big plans for Plaisance Elementary". Daily World. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
- ^ Ardoin, Bobby (2022-01-04). "Historic Plaisance School Building Undergoes Repairs". St. Landry Now. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
- ^ "Rosenwald School Dedication » St. Landry Now Online Newspaper » Opelousas & St Landry Parish, LA". 15 November 2022.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Park Service.
