Desegregation: The Teachers
What happened to the African-American teachers after desegregation?”
Staff researching the history of Fairfax County Public Schools have frequently been asked the question, “What happened to the teachers of the former all-African-American schools after desegregation?” To answer this question, research was conducted in FCPS Human Resources salary records. From 1948 to 1988, employee information was recorded on handwritten cards. The cards list the employees’ full name, work locations, work location start dates, and date of separation from FCPS. The cards are organized alphabetically by last name of employee, not work location, so research is being done using newspaper articles, oral histories, yearbooks, School Board minutes, FCPS bulletins, etc., to identify the names of the teachers of the former all-African-American schools. The names of teachers identified to date, and the schools to which they were assigned, can be found below. This research project is still on-going.
The teachers who were here before 1965, each was moved into a school within the county. No one, and I repeat, no one was denied a job. No one received a lesser job than one was doing here. And I will also state that those who were doing a good job as teachers here did and are still doing a good job at the schools to which they have gone. I have talked with most of the principals in these schools and they are saying that each of these persons has been a real asset to that faculty.
~ Principal B. Oswald Robinson, Louise Archer Elementary
Drew-Smith Elementary School
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Mary Mann Brown | Retired, June 1965 | |
| Mary Beckwith Faucette | Mount Vernon Woods Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Geneva Walker Jones | Wilton Woods Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Augustus L. Lacey | Westbriar Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Mary Laura McPhail | Mount Vernon Woods Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Bernice G. Tate | Bucknell Elementary | 1964-65 |
Eleven Oaks Elementary School
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Elnora Mills Branch | Chapel Square Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Rebecca Marie Britt | Groveton Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Annie Mae Costner | Shrevewood Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Ellis D. Dillard | Groveton High School | 1966-67 |
| Elizabeth Helen Mills | Virginia Hills Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Alta M. Lee Newman | Green Acres Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Addie Belle Greene Pleasants | Quander Road Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Marjorie H. Price | Stratford Landing Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Mary Goins Roots | Fairhill Elementary | Spring 1966 |
| Lola V. Saunders | Retired, June 1966 | |
| Doris J. Smith | Franklin Sherman Elementary | 1964-65 |
James Lee Elementary School
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Bettie Ingram Cooley | Willston Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Deloise McCown Corbin | Green Acres Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Deloris Hawkins Evans | Westlawn Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Ruby Greene Gordon | Lorton Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Nellie Stewart Grayson | Franklin Sherman Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Ida Lorine Harris | Annandale Terrace Elementary | 1966-67 |
| William Lawrence Jones | Principal, Annandale Terrace Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Arthenia Laverne Trail | Masonville Elementary | 1966-67 |
| Alice A. Williams | Fairhill Elementary | 1965-66 |
Lillian Carey Elementary School
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Dolores Hall Dorsey | Spring Hill Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Remell T. Lomax | Retired, June 1965 | |
| Clara Mann Mitchell | Retired, June 1965 | |
| Mary B. Shipman | Marshall Road Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Marjorie L. Weeks | Took a leave of absence, then went to Hybla Valley Elementary. | 1966-67 |
Louise Archer Elementary School
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Ruth Sommersette Branch | Vienna Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Mary Alexander Cox | Bailey’s Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Channie Catlett Henderson | Oakton Elementary | 1964-65 |
| Ora Robinson Lawson | Haycock Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Anna Elaine Lightfoot | Stenwood Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Mabel Thomas Mack | Keene Mill Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Ida Wright Murchison | Fairfax Villa Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Addie Greene Pleasants | Eleven Oaks Elementary (Segregated) | 1965-66 |
| Bladen Oswald Robinson (Principal) | Remained at Louise Archer Elementary | 1965-66 |
| Ruth Singletary Robinson | Rose Hill Elementary | 1965-66 |
Luther Jackson High School
Salary card research is on-going. "Card Not Found" errors typically occur when an employee's surname changed, as was often the case after marriage.
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Lillian Miles Bellamy (English, French) | Luther Jackson Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Loretta H. Berry (Secretary) | Maternity Leave, then Foster Intermediate | 1966-67 |
| Thomas J. Bowser (Special Education) | Frost Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Annie M. Boykins (Art) | Bryant Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Julia Brockman (English) | Left FCPS in October 1963 | |
| Helen Marcel Cauthorne (Reading Teacher) | Itinerant Reading Teacher | 1965-66 |
| Adolphus M. Coward, Jr. (Repair & Maintenance) | Edison High School | 1965-66 |
| Annette D. Coward (Choral & General Music) | J. G. Whittier Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Clarice B. Crudup (Business Education) | Thomas Jefferson High School | 1965-66 |
| Carolyn Dewitt (Language Arts) | Passed away in June 1963 | |
| Annette Dillard (Choral & General Music) | Card Not Found | |
| Gwendolyn M. Fauntleroy (Visiting Teacher) | Groveton High School | 1965-66 |
| George W. Felton (History & Government) | W. T. Woodson High School | 1965-66 |
| James Gaskins (Assistant Principal) | Luther Jackson Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Robert U. Griffin (Band) | Franconia Elementary School | 1965-66 |
| Rosalie J. Griffin (Language Arts) | Glasgow Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Dorothy Hamilton Hall (Homemaking) | Irving Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Raquel W. Hall (Secretary) | Card Not Found | |
| Claudia Carter Hammond (Guidance) | Foster Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Dean Collins Harris (Science) | Irving Intermediate School | 1964-65 |
| Sadie H. Harris (Cosmetology) | Marshall High School | 1965-66 |
| Harriette G. Hemby (English, Drama) | Falls Church High School | 1965-66 |
| Mayme W. Holt (English, Spanish) | J.E.B. Stuart High School | 1964-65 |
| Wilma Hudson (Library Clerk) | Card Not Found | |
| Richard O. Jackson (Industrial Arts) | Langley High School | 1965-66 |
| Carrie James (Health & P.E.) | Card Not Found | |
| Helen E. Johnson (Helping Teacher – Reading) | Left FCPS in June 1963 | |
| Harold L. Lawson (World History & Geography) | Marshall High School | 1965-66 |
| Lola H. LeCounte (Language Arts) | Cooper Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Virginia L. Major (Science) | Poe Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Margaret B. McCoy (Secretary) | Left FCPS in June 1965 | |
| Jean D. Minor (Finance Secretary) | Luther Jackson Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Emma O. Moore (English & History) | Left FCPS in March 1964 | |
| Mabel Jolly Mosley (Librarian) | Luther Jackson Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Thelma Pointer Peoples (English) | Poe Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| James R. Powell (Mathematics) | Lee High School | 1965-66 |
| Charles L. Price (Health & P.E.) | Langley High School | 1965-66 |
| Cecil M. Robinson (English & History) | Whitman Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Margery D. Robinson (Visiting Teacher) | Irving Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Kathryn B. Rowe (Mathematics) | W. T. Woodson High School | 1964-65 |
| Edward K. Shipman (Industrial Training) | Left FCPS in September 1965 | |
| Rosalin C. Short (Business Education) | Left FCPS in March 1963 | |
| Eugene Skinner (Science) | Card Not Found | |
| Robert A. Tate (Assistant Principal) | Edison House - Resource Teacher | 1965-66 |
| Lloyd A. Thompson (Barbering & Trowel Trades) | Marshall High School | 1965-66 |
| Tempie T. Vest (Counselor) | Langley High School | 1965-66 |
| Major J. Wells (Mathematics) | Falls Church High School | 1965-66 |
| Shirley M. Wells (Reading Teacher) | Itinerant Remedial Reading Teacher | 1965-66 |
| Frances E. Williams (Health & P.E.) | Left FCPS in June 1965 | |
| Joyce H. Williams (Mathematics) | Left FCPS in June 1964 | |
| Taylor M. Williams (Principal) | Luther Jackson Intermediate School | 1965-66 |
| Donald L. Witten (Director, Health & P.E.) | Fairfax High School | 1965-66 |
Oak Grove Elementary School
Only one teacher has been identified at this time.
| Teacher | Assigned To: | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Dorothy Lee Jackson | Oakton Elementary | 1964-65 |