BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
A hearing will be held tonight at 8 p.m. Central time, and is available to hear online, concerning the Rosenwald School in Wetumpka as well as other Rosenwald School locations.
The Elmore County Black History Museum is located in the remaining structure of the former Elmore County Training School which was built in 1925. What remains of the original structure today houses the museum and is located at 202 Lancaster Street across from Goodman’s Funeral home. For hours of operation and tour information call 334-567-5109.
Editor’s Note: According to the article linked here, “Some of the Rosenwald schools in Alabama still stand. The Elmore County Training School, built in west Wetumpka in 1924, was made of brick and fared better than most Rosenwald schools. It currently houses the Elmore County Black History Museum.” The address is 202 Lancaster Street across from Goodman’s Funeral Home. For hours of operation and tour information call 334-567-5109.
FROM THE ROSENWALD PARK CAMPAIGN
Dorothy Canter, President, Rosenwald Park Campaign, today urged supporters of the creation of the planned Julius Rosenwald & Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park to speak out during the upcoming public comment period on the National Park Service’s ongoing special resource study (SRS) of the sites identified with the planned Park.
The park is intended to celebrate the life and legacy of Julius Rosenwald, who helped make Sears, Roebuck the retailing powerhouse of the early twentieth century and then used his great wealth to become an innovative philanthropist. His challenge grants in the early 1900s played a pivotal role in helping build nearly 5,000 Rosenwald Schools across 15 Southern states that educated one-third of the African Americans in the South during the Jim Crow era.
“I recommend that all supporters of creating the National Historical Park submit written comments during the public input period,” Canter said. “This also is the time for supporters of individual Rosenwald Schools to provide comments and relevant documentation pertaining to their schools.”
The public comment period will run from July 1 through 31, 2022.
NPS also will host a virtual public meeting tonight, on July 7, at 8 p.m. Central time.
NPS is evaluating in the SRS four sites in Illinois as a possible visitor center/museum and 10 Rosenwald School buildings in various southern states to determine national significance, suitability, feasibility, and need for direct NPS management. The study was mandated through passage of The Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools Act of 2020 (Public Law 116-336).
The purpose of public involvement in the study is to gather information about sites, determine the level of support, and identify issues and concerns with the study area’s potential inclusion in the National Park System. Based on the SRS findings, NPS will determine whether each site meets the criteria for inclusion in the park. NPS then will report its findings to Congress, along with any recommendations from the Secretary of the Interior.
The virtual meeting tonight will take place 7 to 8:30 p.m. ET. The first, on July 6, addressed the four sites in Illinois associated with Rosenwald’s life and legacy, and the second, tonight, will address the 10 Rosenwald Schools including the one in Elmore County.
The purpose of the meetings is to provide information about the study and study process, and answer questions from the public.
For the July 7 meeting click on the link below at 8 p.m. Central time. To join by phone, call 202-640-1187 (toll call). Conference ID: 437 498 940#
URL/Webinar link:
Written comments will be accepted from July 1 through July 31, 2022, through the project webpage.
For information on the Campaign, visit its website https://www.rosenwaldpark.org/
Canter can be reached at [email protected]
