Date of Award

5-15-2015

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Educational Policy Studies

First Advisor

Deron Boyles, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Chara Bohan, Ph.D.

Third Advisor

Daphne Greenberg, Ph.D.

Fourth Advisor

Philo Hutcheson, Ph.D.

Abstract

In this dissertation I examine the work implemented by officers of the Rosenwald Fund after the school building program ended in 1932. Based on extensive visits to Rosenwald schools throughout the rural South, members of the Rosenwald Fund recognized the need to improve instruction and resources in the schools and established the Rural School Council. Through various demonstration projects and field studies, the work shifted to improving teacher education by heavily investing in several colleges including West Georgia College, South Georgia Teachers College, The University of Georgia, and Fort Valley State Teachers College. The Rural School Council members believed that by improving schools, rural living conditions and race relations would also improve. To explore the work of the Rural School Council, I wrote a narrative historical study, analyzing extensive archival collections from Fisk University, The Amistad Research Center, and the Georgia Archives as well as books and journal articles written by Council members. The work of the Council led to lasting change in teacher education in Georgia.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.57709/7078801

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