Rosenwald Schools have served as living legacies of Black history in the South for a century. Over the years, the schools have been gradually declining or abandoned, leaving the historic school buildings as shells of the past.

Now, a Mississippi architectural firm is helping to restore the legacy, starting with three Rosenwald Schools throughout Mississippi.

In late February 2024, Belinda Stewart Architecture launched the Rosenwald Schools Preservation Project that will restore three school buildings — one each in Madison, Quitman and Sunflower counties.

The Rosenwald Schools Preservation Project is partially funded by a Community Heritage Preservation Grant through the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

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The history of Rosenwald Schools

The 1896 U.S. Supreme Court case “Plessy v. Ferguson” created the “separate but equal” doctrine, legalizing segregation between Black citizens and white citizens in separate public facilities.

After the ruling, schools for white children received a significantly higher amount of attention and funding from state governments. Black students, especially those is rural areas, were often forced to attend school in abandoned, dilapidated churches and tenant buildings with a fraction of the resources available to white schools.