Rosenwald Fund facts for kids
The Rosenwald Fund, also known as the Rosenwald Foundation, was a charity started in 1917 by Julius Rosenwald and his family. Their goal was "the well-being of mankind." Julius Rosenwald was a part-owner and president of the famous company Sears, Roebuck and Company.
The Fund was special because it was designed to spend all of its money to help people, not to last forever. By the time it closed in 1948, it had given away over $70 million. This money helped public schools, colleges, universities, museums, and many groups that supported Jewish and African American communities.
Building Schools for a Better Future
One of the most important things the Rosenwald Fund did was help build schools for African-American children in the southern United States. In the early 1900s, schools in the South were segregated, which meant black and white children had to go to separate schools. The schools for black children were often given very little money and were in poor condition.
The Rosenwald Fund gave over $4.4 million to change this. This money helped build more than 5,000 new schools, workshops, and homes for teachers. These schools became known as "Rosenwald Schools."
How Communities Built the Schools
The Fund didn't just give away money. It created a partnership. To get money for a new school, a community had to do three things:
- The local, all-white school board had to agree to run the school.
- The white community had to contribute money.
- The black community had to raise money or donate land and labor to help build it.
This plan brought people together to work toward a common goal. The schools were built using special designs from architects at what is now Tuskegee University. Today, many of these historic school buildings are being saved as important landmarks.
Helping Talented People Succeed
The Rosenwald Fund also gave grants, called fellowships, to talented African Americans. A fellowship is money given to a person to help them study, create art, or do research. Between 1928 and 1948, the Fund gave hundreds of these grants to artists, writers, and scientists.
This support helped many people become famous leaders in their fields. The list of people who received fellowships is like a "Who's Who" of Black America from that time. The grants were usually between $1,000 and $2,000, which was a lot of money back then.
A Health Program with a Sad Ending
In 1929, the Rosenwald Fund started a program to treat a serious illness that was common in poor African-American communities in the South. The Fund's goal was to find and treat people who were sick.
The Fund stopped paying for the program in 1932. After that, the U.S. government took it over but changed its purpose completely. The government began a harmful study where it watched sick people but did not give them medicine, even after a cure was found. This was very different from the Rosenwald Fund's original goal of helping people.
Famous Fellowship Winners
The Rosenwald Fund supported hundreds of amazing people. Here are just a few of the most well-known individuals who received a fellowship to help them with their work:
- Marian Anderson, a world-famous opera singer.
- Ralph Bunche, a diplomat who won the Nobel Peace Prize.
- W.E.B. Du Bois, a writer and one of the founders of the NAACP.
- Katherine Dunham, a famous dancer and choreographer.
- Ralph Ellison, the author of the famous novel Invisible Man.
- Langston Hughes, a celebrated poet and writer from the Harlem Renaissance.
- Zora Neale Hurston, a writer and anthropologist known for her book Their Eyes Were Watching God.
- Jacob Lawrence, a painter known for his series on the Great Migration.
- Gordon Parks, a groundbreaking photographer, musician, and film director.
- Augusta Savage, a sculptor who was a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance.
See also
In Spanish: Fondo Rosenwald para niños
- Rosenwald Schools
- Rosenwald (film)
- Julian Mack
- Henry H. Rogers
- Booker T. Washington
