The Durham State Normal Schol for Negroes, operated under state control, is the new name that has been given the National Training school that for about 16 years has been a mighty factor in the education of negroes in the state. The new status of the school was announced yesterday. A new board of trustees has been appointed and plans are under way for making it one of the best colored institutions of education in the nation.
The institution went into state control Tuesday afternoon when the newly appointed board of trustees met and organized. The board is composed of W.J. Brogden, chairman; J.B. Mason, secretary and treasurer; R.L. Flowers, W.D. Carmichael, and N.C. Newbold, the latter of the state board of education in charge of negro school work. The board is composed of men who have been prominent in educational affairs in the state.
The transfer of the negro school to the state is an important event in the progress of negro education in North Carolina. The National Training school has for many years been educating the negroes of the state and nation and through its operation many men and women are being sent out into the world to help in training others of their race and also in preaching the gospel. Dr. James E. Shepherd, the president of the school, is one of the leading negro educators of the south. Under his leadership the institution has gained a national reputation, and has won favor among the educators and persons interested in social work throughout the United States. One distinguished visitor to the school some time ago declared that the work done here ranked second only to that done by the Tuskegee Institute. The enrollment in the old school was approximately 200, and under the management of the state and with standardized work. It will very probably increase in enrollment as the school grows form year to year.
The state takes over the tangible property of the school, which includes approximately 33 acres of land, the buildings and all equipment, the appraised value of the property ranging from $119,000 as to the lowest to $150,000 as the highest. There is a state appropriation of $80,000 of which $48,000 is for paying for the school property, leaving $32,000 or $16,000 a year for maintenance until June 30, 1925. The property is advantageously located, being situated in the heart of the Hayti section where it can better function for the colored people. Its campus is a beautiful one and the buildings are in good condition. Durham has the best class of negroes in the state of North Carolina and the school is located in the midst of the best of them, with the goodly influence of the churches and their members to help in making the school a success.
At the meeting of the trustees Tuesday the faculty for the school for the coming term was elected. It is composed of 16 members, including Dr. Shepherd, who was elected principal. All of the teachers with the possible exception of two or three were members of the faculty under the National Training school management. The trustees passed upon the budget to be used until June 30, next, and also outlined the plans for making the school a standard normal. They also discussed other matters which will have to do with the general program for development among the state normal schools.
The Durham school is the third school of this kind to be taken over by the state board of education as normal schools. The state is operating schools in Winston-Salem in the west and Elizabeth City in the east. The action by the state in taking over the local institution is recognition on their part of the highe standard of work that is being done here and of the efficient system of conducting it. Under the new system it is thought that the school can and will do better work and will increase its range of service.
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From the front page of The Durham Morning Herald, Thursday, Aug. 30, 1923. the photo is from Durham County Library's collection. To read more about Dr. Shepherd, go to the Museum of Durham History' site at http://museumofdurhamhistory.org/beneathourfeet/people/ShepardEJames.
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