ONLY IN AMERICA In celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month
LOVE
of
LEARNING
How American Jews’ dedication to education transformed them—and the United States.
A PASSION FOR EDUCATION Dear Friends, Only in America could this remarkable story be told. For more than 360 years, Jewish immigrants have been coming here to escape persecution and seek a better life. Despite often challenging circumstances, they discovered great opportunities, and many succeeded. This is not just a Jewish story, of course; many ethnic and religious groups have had similar experiences. But the particulars of the Jewish story are worth celebrating. And that is what Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) sets out to do each May: honor the hard work, history, and aspirations of American Jews, and share lesser-known accounts of their contributions to our country. A common element in so many Jewish American stories is a passion for education. When that passion met the unprecedented access to schooling that the US offered, the effect was transformational. On the following pages, you’ll read about a few American Jews whose love of learning changed their lives for the better—and improved the quality of education for all Americans. The National Museum of American Jewish History is proud to be an official sponsor of the 2016 JAHM celebration. We offer this booklet as a modest tribute to this remarkable story. Signed,
Above: Assembly, Evening School for Immigrants, Education Alliance, Lower East Side, New York, 1906.
2
The Great
UNSUNG PHILANTHROPIST Julius Rosenwald helped build more than 5,000 schools and opened new educational doors for African Americans One of the great heroes of American education was an early 20th century businessman who never finished high school. The son of German Jewish immigrants, Julius Rosenwald (1860–1932) is often remembered as the executive who turned Sears, Roebuck and Co. into a hugely successful retailer. But many consider Rosenwald’s greatest achievement his visionary philanthropy, which vastly improved education for African Americans long before Brown v. Board of Education, the historic 1954 ruling that discredited the doctrine of educational segregation. As one of the most powerful businessmen in America, Rosenwald could have simply enjoyed the fruits of his labors. But he was driven to do something more—to act on the Jewish value of tzedekah, righteous charity for social justice. Over the course of his life, Rosenwald donated tens of millions of dollars to worthy causes. A 1912 conversation with African American leader Booker T. Washington inspired Rosenwald. While speaking with Washington, the founder of the esteemed Tuskegee Institute, Rosenwald learned of the disgraceful condition of school buildings provided to black communities by state governments in the South. Disturbed by what he heard, Rosenwald dedicated himself to ensuring that African American communities in the South had access to schools in respectable buildings.
Above: Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington, Tuskegee Institute, 1915. Side by side, they provided opportunities for African Americans in the South during the Jim Crow era. Courtesy of Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.
3
Courtesy of Fisk University, John Hope and Aurelia E. Franklin Library.
This map created by the Julius Rosenwald Fund shows the location of the schools throughout the southern states. By 1928, one in every five schools for black students in America was a Rosenwald School.
Handsome and well designed, the new schools had a powerful effect on the communities in which they were constructed. Over the next 20 years, Rosenwald helped fund more than 5,000 new schools across 11 southern states. The buildings continued to be used until the end of legally segregated education and the Civil Rights era. The list of Rosenwald school alumni includes such notables as poet Maya Angelou, congressman John Lewis, and columnist/writer Eugene Robinson. “Julius Rosenwald’s philanthropy created black schools throughout the south,” historian David Levering Lewis told the makers of Rosenwald, the 2015 documentary by filmmaker Aviva Kempner. “He was a virtual Department of Education of the United States. Without that initiative,” Levering Lewis noted, “we would have had a different America.” One out of every three African American children in the South went to a Rosenwald school.
4
Rosenwald’s efforts went far beyond school construction. He also built dozens of YMCAs and quality housing for African Americans, and he created a foundation that helped hundreds of young people pursue their educational passions. Many Rosenwald Fund grant recipients went on to remarkably successful careers— including writers Langston Hughes and Ralph Ellison, painter Jacob Lawrence, Nobel Prize–winning diplomat Ralph Bunche, and acclaimed singer Marian Anderson. Julius Rosenwald was a modest man. Over time he became—in the words of his grandson and biographer Peter Ascoli—“the great unsung philanthropist.” Now, Rosenwald’s remarkable work is once again being recognized for its tremendous impact in connection to Jewish values. According to his greatgrandson David Stern, “Rosenwald used his philanthropy so that African Americans could go to school and live the American dream.”
Right: The Pee Dee Colored School in Marion County, SC, built in 1922–23. Courtesy of the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.
LEARN MORE The story of the Rosenwald schools has been told recently in a number of books and a noteworthy documentary.
BOOKS
Force for Change: African American Art and the Julius Rosenwald Fund by Daniel Schulman Julius Rosenwald by Hasia Diner, Jewish Lives series (forthcoming, November 2016) Julius Rosenwald: The Man Who Built Sears, Roebuck and Advanced the Cause of Black Education in the American South by Peter Ascoli Dear Mr. Rosenwald by Carole Boston Weatherford The Rosenwald Schools of the American South by Mary S. Hoffschwelle You Need a Schoolhouse: Booker T. Washington, Julius Rosenwald and the Building of Schools for the Segregated South by Stephanie Deutsch
FILM
Rosenwald (2015), directed by Aviva Kempner (Ciesla Foundation), rosenwaldfilm.org
ONLINE ARCHIVES
rosenwald.fisk.edu
5
UNCONVENTIONAL EDUCATORS Tens of thousands of Jewish Americans have served as dedicated teachers in US schools. Others applied their teaching talents outside the traditional classroom. Here are three unconventional Jewish teachers—all of whom are featured in the Museum’s Only in America® Gallery—who brought invaluable innovation to American education.
Henrietta Szold (1860–1945) is famous for founding the Jewish women’s organization Hadassah in 1912. But early in her life Szold discovered eastern European immigrants desperate to learn their new land’s language. In 1889 she opened the first night school in Baltimore, Maryland, where these newcomers learned English as well as American history and culture.
Jonas Salk (1914–1995) developed the first vaccine to prevent polio, saving untold numbers of people from contracting this crippling disease. Salk’s other great legacy was the creation, in 1960, of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, which conducts research in molecular biology, genetics, and neurosciences. The Salk Institute ranks consistently among the world’s top life-science institutions in research output and quality.
Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990) was a brilliant conductor and composer. He is also revered for his pioneering use of television to bring classical music to tens of millions. Bernstein’s Young People’s Concerts have been hailed as among the most influential music education programs ever produced.
Above photos (top to bottom): Henrietta Szold, 1940. Courtesy of the National Library of Israel, Schwadron Collection; Alexander Ganan. Jonas Salk, 1959. Courtesy of SAS Scandinavian Airlines. Leonard Bernstein by Jack Mitchell.
6
Visitors at the National Museum of American Jewish History in conversation with Richard Kurin, Acting Provost and Under Secretary for Museums and Research, and author of The Smithsonian’s History of America in 101 Objects. Some of these objects are featured in the Museum’s core exhibition.
DELVE DEEPER It’s easy to join in the celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM). Below are resources and ideas to help you enjoy the month of May and beyond. You can find much more about everything mentioned below, including helpful web links, at NMAJH.org/JAHM. 1. Attend one of the hundreds of JAHM events already planned around the US, which are listed at jewishamericanheritagemonth.us. 2. Visit institutions dedicated to Jewish history and culture. Seek out the rich selection of Jewish-themed bookstores, museums, cultural centers, and archives. Find one near you at cajm.net. 3. Join an American Jewish–themed book club or start your own. 4. Reach out to an educator who made a difference in your life. Celebrate this person’s impact on you or your community. 5. Honor your community’s Jewish history. Research and recognize local landmarks or contributions by community members. 6. Invite a Traveling Suitcase to your community. Discover more about this innovative Museum program, which sends replicas of historic documents and artifacts around the US. Contact our education department at 215.923.3811 x118 for more information. 7. Share a story about your own heritage on social media. Post photos and stories about memorable family experiences on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other sites. By including the hashtag #MyJAHMStory, you’ll help create an online trove of family recollections.
Now, in the words of the revered first-century Rabbi Hillel, “Go and learn!”
7
ONLY IN AMERICA GALLERY / HALL OF FAME AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN JEWISH HISTORY ®
The Only in America® Gallery / Hall of Fame illustrates the choices, challenges, and opportunities Jewish Americans encountered on their path to remarkable achievement. Julius Rosenwald is the 2016 inductee and 19th member.
Only in America® Gallery / Hall of Fame
Inductees Irving Berlin Leonard Bernstein Louis Brandeis Albert Einstein Mordecai Kaplan Sandy Koufax Estée Lauder
Emma Lazarus Isaac Leeser Golda Meir Julius Rosenwald Jonas Salk Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Rose Schneiderman Isaac Bashevis Singer Steven Spielberg Barbra Streisand Henrietta Szold Isaac Mayer Wise
Learn more about these distinguished Jewish Americans, and many others, at survey.NMAJH.org.
Find us on
BOARD OF DIRECTORS, JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Ivy L. Barsky, National Museum of American Jewish History
Abby S. Schwartz, The Skirball Museum in Cincinnati
Greg Rosenbaum, Palisades Associates, Inc.
Lisa B. Frankel, The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives
Mel Wacks, Jewish-American Hall of Fame
Marcia Jo Zerivitz, Jewish Museum of Florida Dr. Gary P. Zola, The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives
Rachel Lithgow, American Jewish Historical Society
Melissa Martens Yaverbaum, Council of American Jewish Museums
Gail Reimer, Jewish Women’s Archive (emeritus)
FOUNDERS, JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
ADVISORY COMMITTEE, JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Shelley Rood, The Jewish Federations of North America
Laura Apelbaum, Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington
Judith Rosenbaum, Ph.D., Jewish Women’s Archive
Senator Arlen Specter, z”l, and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz
NMAJH.org/JAHM | 215.923.3811 On Historic Independence Mall Philadelphia
Cover image: Esther Chwalow teaches a student at Friends of the Deaf, a preschool for deaf children that was part of the Friends of the Deaf Community Center, which aimed to be a place for the Jewish deaf community, and their friends, to hold meetings and religious services. Philadelphia, 1965. Courtesy of Ilana Blumenthal and Leora Chwalow.