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A Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and the 4,978 Schools that Changed America
"It is a crime to pile up money after one has accumulated all that he needs for himself and his family. There is a stage where acquisition becomes a vice." —Julius Rosenwald, 1918
"The picture of several dozen boys and girls in a schoolroom engaged in study made a deep impression upon me, and I had the feeling that to get into a schoolhouse and study in this way would be about the same as getting into paradise.” —Booker T. Washington, 1901
A Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and the 4,978 Schools that Changed America tells the largely unknown story of the early twentieth-century partnership between Julius Rosenwald, a Jewish businessman and philanthropist, and Booker T. Washington, a Black educator, author, and reformer, which led to the construction of thousands of schoolhouses across fifteen states in the segregated South. The Rosenwald Schools provided classrooms and were places where learning, community, and civic pride flourished, designed to expand opportunity and address systemic inequities for Black children.
To document this story, photographer and curator Andrew Feiler traveled more than 25,000 miles, visiting 105 schools and interviewing dozens of former students, teachers, preservationists, and community leaders. The exhibition features Feiler’s photographs and narratives, reproduced architectural drawings and school models, a recreated Rosenwald classroom with period artifacts, and an introductory video, providing a vivid account of this transformative initiative.
Opening in tandem with The Tuskegee Chapel: Paul Rudolph x Fry & Welch, the exhibition situates the Rosenwald Schools within a broader story of how education, architecture, and collaboration shaped Black history and community life. Together, the two exhibitions show how thoughtfully designed places, whether replicated thousands of times or built as singular landmarks, supported learning, fostered identity, and influenced social life.
Of the original 4,977 schools, approximately 500 survive today. While some remain in use or have been repurposed, many are at risk of collapse. This exhibition highlights the importance of preserving these sites and the values they represent for future generations.
Explore our interactive StoryMap to find Rosenwald School sites near you. Discover both standing and demolished schools and see how many have been thoughtfully preserved and reimagined to continue serving their communities today.
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