A brief Research Prospectus (Draft3) Booker T Washington Junior College Legacy Project

The purpose of the proposed project is to locate and interview former faculty and students who were associated with Booker T. Washington Junior College in Pensacola, collecting and making record of their experiences. Pensacola State College, the institution that subsumed Booker T. Washington Junior College (Washington Junior College) in 1967, maintains a scant archive containing a few newsletters, some scrapbooks with photos of schools activities and little more than this. Because Washington Junior College was an important asset in the African American community and for some students, a the lone gateway to four year colleges and job opportunities, collecting data order to reconstruct, through their stories and experiences, a fuller, more detailed history of this institution is important. Brief History For twenty-six years, from 1949 through 1965, African American students in Pensacola who aspired to go to college had the option of attending Washington Junior College, the first public Black Junior College in Florida (Smith, 1994). Because of the educational institutions were segregated, African American students were not allowed to attend Pensacola Junior College, a gateway institution developed in 1948 through Pensacola High School (College Dateline, n.d.). Operating initially as grades 13 and 14 of Washington Junior College, the Escambia County Public School District tapped Dr. Garrett. T Wiggins, who left his position at Texan Southern University to come to Pensacola and head both the traditional high school and this newly conceptualized 'Junior College' (Smith, 1994). Washington Junior College officially came under the Florida Community College Council in 1955 and continued to successfully serve the African American citizens of Pensacola and African American military personnel from the Naval Air Station in Pensacola as a segregated state institution for another eleven years after Brown v Board of Education until it was subsumed by Pensacola Junior College in 1966 (McCarthy, 2007).

Booker T. Washington Junior College Legacy Project Prospectus

During its term as an official junior college, (1957-1965) Washington Junior College served an average of 225-250 students per year, increasing to over 350 the last year it was open (McCarthy, 2007).

Although official records of enrollment for the first 8 years of operation have not been located, reviewing graduation lists and photos from early years, during its tenure, Washington Junior College is estimated to have served approximately 2000 students with academic and vocational curriculum - students who had few other options to obtain a college education (Smith, 1994). Need For the Project Community colleges today educate almost 40% of all college students. The number rises disproportionately for the enrollment of students of color, (Institute for Higher Education Policy, 2011) however, successful completions lag behind (Taylor, 2009; Census Bureau, October, 2009). Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) have had an important role and have made ongoing contributions to the general welfare and prosperity of the United States and have produced many of the Nation's leaders in business, government, academia, and the military (Obama, 2010). Indeed research has shown that African American students who are economically disadvantaged are more likely to enter postsecondary education through HBCU than through other colleges and universities, HBCUs thereby providing an important gateway (Bennett & Xie, 2003). Studies conducted within two decades of the integration of community colleges in Florida indicated that African American students were finding predominantly white colleges unwelcoming (Willie & Cunnigen, 1981). At a time when the livelihood and well-being of many students of color are dependent on their obtaining a college education, understanding the successful methods employed at Washington Junior College to produce students who were academically prepared to enter the workforce or to go on to further education is critical (Institute for Higher Education Policy, 2011). Data Collection Procedures Snowball sampling techniques will be utilized to locate former faculty and students. Utilizing a combination of individual interviews and focus groups, questions will be designed to elicit and identify

Booker T. Washington Junior College Legacy Project Prospectus

specific aspects of the educational programs or general environment that students and faculty found

particularly beneficial and or effective. Both interview and focus groups with be recorded using a digital audio recorder and transcripts will be produced. As they are identified to share their experiences, former students and faculty will also be encouraged to share photos or other mementos of their experiences with Washington Junior College that augment and deepen the understanding of the shared experiences. Protection for participants Consent to participate in the legacy project will be obtained from each individual. Because this is historical research and the life-long experiences of individuals may be related to their college experiences, data will be identified by the name of the person contributing it, unless that person wishes to remain anonymous. Results Results of the project, stories from Washington High School, will be retained and may be used as a portion of works describing approaches to of methods of education that are effective with certain populations.

Booker T. Washington Junior College Legacy Project Prospectus References

Census Bureau, U. (October, 2009). School Enrollment - Social and Economic Characteristics of Students: October 2009. Retrieved 4 13, 2011, from U S Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/school/cps2009.html Institute for Higher Education Policy. (2011, June). Initial College Attendance of Low-Income Young Adults. Retrieved 1 10, 2012, from Institute for Higher Education Policy. Washington, DC: http://www.ihep.org/assets/files/publications/m-r/Portraits-LowIncome_Young_Adults_Attendance_Brief_FINAL_June_2011.pdf McCarthy, K. (2007). African American sites in Florida. Sarasota, Florida: Pineapple Press, Inc. College Dateline. (n.d.). Retrieved from Pensacola State College : http://www.pensacolastate.edu/dateline/index.php Obama, B. (2010). Executive Order 13532 of February 26, 2010 . Retrieved 2012, from U.S. Department of Education: http://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/list/whhbcu/edlite-exec-order.html Smith, W. (1994). The maginficent twelve: Florida's Black junior colleges. Winter Park, Florida: Four-G Publishers. Taylor, P. (2009). College enrollment hits all-time high, fueled by community college surge. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center, Social and Demographocs Trends Reports.