EWP FundRaiserVal

Title

EWP FundRaiserVal

Place

Virginia

Identifier

1037226

Is Version Of

1037226_EWP_FundRaiserVal.pdf

Is Part Of

Uncategorized

Date Created

2024-01-07

Format

Pdf Document

Number

13c6ce4ea1e7f51625643a6e0f9f430cdb7cd936cb4d11015cac51e93c1503ed

Source

/Volumes/T7 Shield/EWP/Elements/EWP_Files/Access Files/Upload temp/1037226_EWP_FundRaiserVal.pdf

Publisher

Digitized by Edwin Washington Project

Rights

Loudoun County Public Schools

Language

English

Replaces

/Volumes/T7 Shield/EWP/Elements/EWP_Files/source/Ingest Two/EWP Donation Letters/FundRaiserVal.pdf

extracted text

The Edwin Washington Project
26128 Talamore Drive, South Riding, Va 20152
www.edwinwashingtonproject.org
November 14, 2016

Dear Val,
Thanks for all of your support for the Prosperity Baptist Church. I also manage a nonprofit called the Edwin Washington Project and wondered if your group would be willing
to help. .
This project is documenting the impact of segregation in Loudoun County on AfricanAmerican students, teachers and families. The records I use cover 1846 to the mid1960’s and were lost for many years. Once found, and largely out of order, they were
slated to be burned! Fortunately, the Records Office at Loudoun County Public Schools
(LCPS) pushed back and asked me to review the material’s significance and establish a
preservation program to prevent books and thousands of fragile documents from further
deterioration. LCPS has also provided an office in Round Hill where a team of
enthusiastic volunteers from Fairfax and Loudoun assist. The one wrinkle is that I have
to cover the expenses, which I’ve done since 2014. That has included trips to the
Library of Virginia, other archives and the purchase of archival boxes, etc. My team of
volunteers has also set up an excellent website.
The expenses for the next few years go beyond my personal ability; so I’m hoping your
group and friends you might recommend will contribute as an investment in our AfricanAmerican community and civil rights. Estimated costs for 2017 will be $24,000. As an
example, $4,400 will specifically go to the purchase of acid free/chemical free boxes,
folders and sheet protectors. We are also setting up a sophisticated digital program
aimed at sharing most of the records with the world. What I’m requesting is a $500
donation.
Philip Thompson of the local chapter of the NAACP has also suggested that I duplicate
the effort in other Virginia counties without the money or training for this kind of work.
We have years of research ahead in Loudoun and expansion could make Loudoun a
Center of Excellence for the study of segregation. We will act as a charity, contributing
to others in need, which we can do since the project is incorporated as a 501©3.
Our vital work is all the more pertinent after the vandalism of the Ashburn Colored
School. This is also work I can lead very well. I have a Master’s Degree in
Library/Information Science from the Catholic University of America (CUA), was once
the President’s librarian at Blair House, focused on cultural preservation in my last
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decade of work at the U.S. Department of State and just completed two years on the
faculty of the school of Library/Information at CUA. Others agree that the work
completed so far has been important. We have been supported by a joint resolution
the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates, news reports by Loudoun Now and NBC
News (see our website), as well as a full page in the annual report of the
Superintendent of the Public School system. In addition, we have a fantastic team of
volunteers, a PhD candidate in Education, a retired Professor of English and many
others who understand the importance of protecting the files and explaining the history
we are revealing. .
We have already accomplished much. We have catalogued thousands of records and
begun a significant digital program, scanning documents to protect the information from
fires and floods, and started a database that for the first time will show every AfricanAmerican student, teacher and school from Reconstruction to integration. We are
moving fragile files into archival containers and are developing the story of educational
segregation. Sometimes, the story will disappoint, such as when the County fought for
segregation in the 1950’s and 60’s but other times we have found positive stories such
as in 1920 when the Superintendent decided to no longer use whites to supervise black
teachers. We also found a true national treasure in the form of a roll of hand written
petitions by African-American parents and teachers asking for toilets, repairs to schools,
qualified teachers and other improvements to educational life. One undated document
may be the first petition for an accredited high school, all done during Jim Crow, when it
was dangerous for African-Americans to be politically active.
If you can help, this will make a significant contribution to the preservation of AfricanAmerican history. More than that, your role will help us build a true monument to the
many African-American children, parents, teachers and their supporters who struggled
to educate themselves against terrible odds. Their descendants live today. We have
many monuments to soldiers. My team and I would like this to be a monument to a
peaceful struggle that offers an effective counter-argument to anyone in the world today
who would advocate for racial or religious prejudice, or segregation.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Warm regards,

Larry Roeder, MS
Principal Investigator.

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