Rosenwald Schools' Film Grant Match

Pickensville Rosenwald School, Pickensville, Alabama.


When we stumbled upon this story –  the story of how two unlikely partners helped create nearly 5,000 public schools for African American children in the Jim Crow South – we couldn't believe it.

As longtime filmmakers and journalists, we couldn't believe we'd never heard of Rosenwald Schools. We couldn't believe the story hasn't been told on national public television.

As we met Rosenwald School alumni, we were amazed by people with multiple master's degrees and doctorates, accomplished people who started their educations in simple one- and two-room wooden schoolhouses in the mid-20th century.

You know of some Rosenwald School alumni. The late poet Maya Angelou attended a Rosenwald School. So did Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson, as did Congressman John Lewis of Georgia. There are thousands upon thousands more.

We knew this story had to be captured, shared widely, and preserved for future generations. And we knew it was up to us to do it.

So we created a non-profit organization, Longleaf Productions, to provide a financial vehicle for our dream. We aim to see the completed one-hour documentary, “The Rosenwald Connection,”  on national public television.

Who was Rosenwald? Julius Rosenwald, the president & CEO of Sears, Roebuck. A managerial genius, the son of German Jewish immigrants, born in Springfield, Illinois. But he never finished high school.

He became friends with Booker T. Washington, a man  born a slave who later became one of the nation's most admired African American educators.


Booker T. Washington and Julius Rosenwald.


The men shared a passion for building up individuals and communities. They hatched a plan to bring public schools to the Jim Crow South. Why? Because in the early 20th century, schools for rural black citizens were almost non-existent. Teachers often were largely ill-prepared.

Washington and Rosenwald knew that if children were given the opportunity to learn, their worlds would change. And they would change the world. And they did.


Students at Newton School, Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana.


Rosenwald School Teachers / University of Virginia Photo


That's the essence of “The Rosenwald Connection." It's a beautiful people story.

So far, we've filmed interviews and conducted research in seven states. And we've met amazing people, like Dr. Charlie Nelms.  He started school in a one-room Rosenwald School in Arkansas. He went on to serve as a university chancellor in Michigan, Indiana, and North Carolina.


The Rev. Lorenzo Lynch at his boyhood school in Hamilton, North Carolina.

We interviewed the Rev. Lorenzo Lynch in the school he attended as a boy in Hamilton, North Carolina. His school, by the way, was the first Rosenwald School we encountered back in 2012.

The pursuit of higher education and service became a Lynch family tradition. Rev. Lynch's daughter, Loretta Lynch, served as attorney general of the United States under President Obama.

The nation continues to reap the benefits of Rosenwald Schools. The schools helped break Jim Crow's hold on the South, and, according to one historian we interviewed, helped pave the way for the Civil Rights Movement and, ultimately, the election of Barack Obama.


Some later Rosenwald Schools were of brick construction, like this one in Snow Hill, North Carolina.


Here's where you come in: We have qualified for a $10,000 grant from the Alabama Humanities Foundation. But to secure the grant, we must raise $20,000 in matching funds. (We initially had a deadline of March 30, but we have an extension! Yay!)

We've added another $5,000 to cover the expenses of this campaign and to give us a little cushion going forward. (GoFundMe takes a cut, and rightly so, for this great service).

The funds you donate will enable us to go back on the road to do more research, gather more interviews, and film additional Rosenwald Schools.

Surviving schools dot the landscape from Maryland to Texas. Some have been restored by proud communities. Others, like one we found in Northampton County, N.C., stand silent in pine forests, ghosts of another era.


Ridgeley Rosenwald School, restored in Prince Georges County, Maryland.


Cool Springs Rosenwald School, Northampton County, North Carolina.

With your help, we can push this project toward completion. You can help us tell the story of Rosenwald Schools, and make sure that this uplifting story gets the audience it deserves.

Consider making a donation to honor a public school teacher. Or perhaps you know a Rosenwald School alumus to honor (they are all around us).  Many alumns are Baby Boomers nearing retirement age, and they are fiercely proud of their Rosenwald School connections.

Your gift is crucial in this next phase of our production. Thank you for your contribution. We promise to make the most of every penny!

And remember: Your gift is tax deductible.

Learn more about us at our website.

Director Jere Snyder filming at Coinjock School in eastern North Carolina.

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