Dear Friends,
The Woodville-Rosenwald School Foundation is excited to offer an opportunity for local citizens, employers, educators, students, and families to learn more about the origin and historic significance of Gloucester’s Woodville School and its important connection to Gloucester, the Middle Peninsula, and thousands of other African-American schools constructed throughout the South in the early part of the 20th century.
Rosenwald is a documentary film (click here to view the playbill) that chronicles how businessman and philanthropist Julius Rosenwald (president of Sears Roebuck in 1908), joined with African-American communities in the segregated South to build more than 5000 schools during the early part of the 20th century, at a time when formal education for Black youth in the South was a neglected—or entirely forgotten—endeavor. This historical and unlikely partnership, as well as modern-day attempts to maintain or reconfigure the historic schools, is an often untold story that embodies the resolve of African-Americans who endured generations of abuse and neglect in the post-Reconstruction and Jim Crow South. Filmmaker Aviva Kempner tells a dramatic and compelling story of hope, pride, perseverance, and community that resonates in the shadow of the cultural reckoning sweeping the nation today.
The Woodville-Rosenwald School Foundation, in partnership with filmmaker Aviva Kempner, The Kellogg Foundation, The Ciesla Foundation, and Gloucester County Public Schools, is proud to present the following:
January 25-26-27: View the Rosenwald film at no cost to you, to stream at your leisure ;January 28 (12:00 PM): Join a Panel Discussion with filmmaker Aviva Kempner and local historians to learn more about this historic effort.
We apologize if you receive multiple emails. We are extending the invitation through community groups who may also forward this information to you.
Regards,
The Woodville Rosenwald Foundation Board
Rosenwald is a documentary film (click here to view the playbill) that chronicles how businessman and philanthropist Julius Rosenwald (president of Sears Roebuck in 1908), joined with African-American communities in the segregated South to build more than 5000 schools during the early part of the 20th century, at a time when formal education for Black youth in the South was a neglected—or entirely forgotten—endeavor. This historical and unlikely partnership, as well as modern-day attempts to maintain or reconfigure the historic schools, is an often untold story that embodies the resolve of African-Americans who endured generations of abuse and neglect in the post-Reconstruction and Jim Crow South. Filmmaker Aviva Kempner tells a dramatic and compelling story of hope, pride, perseverance, and community that resonates in the shadow of the cultural reckoning sweeping the nation today.
The Woodville-Rosenwald School Foundation, in partnership with filmmaker Aviva Kempner, The Kellogg Foundation, The Ciesla Foundation, and Gloucester County Public Schools, is proud to present the following:
January 25-26-27: View the Rosenwald film at no cost to you, to stream at your leisure ;January 28 (12:00 PM): Join a Panel Discussion with filmmaker Aviva Kempner and local historians to learn more about this historic effort.
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ABOUT THE FILM: Rosenwald: The Remarkable Story of a Jewish Partnership With African-American Communities
- Stream this 96-minute documentary at your leisure on January 25-26 &-27 by accessing the link at woodvillerosenwaldschool.org.
- Learn more about this important film by clicking here.
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ABOUT THE PANEL DISCUSSION:
- Join the Panel Discussion via Zoom on January 28 by clicking here: Rosenwald Film Panel Discussion/Webinar
- Moderated by Dr. Walter Clemons, Division Superintendent, Gloucester County Public Schools
- Aviva Kempner – Filmmaker
- Dr. Wesley Wilson, President, Woodville Rosenwald School Foundation
- Dr. Maurice Jackson: Professor of History & African American Studies, Georgetown University
- Eugene Johnson: Alumnus, Gloucester Training School, Class of 1944
- Dianne Carter DeMayo: Teacher, United States & World History, Gloucester High School
- Dr. Chuck Wagner, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, GCPS
- Viewers will receive a follow-up communication requesting feedback!
We apologize if you receive multiple emails. We are extending the invitation through community groups who may also forward this information to you.
Regards,
The Woodville Rosenwald Foundation Board