DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say — and this one's got some real heart to it. We're talking about Booker T. Washington School, in Arlington, Tarrant County, and the story of a community that built something lasting against considerable odds.
Now, the African-American community known as the Hill sat northwest of Arlington's original town boundaries. And by the 1890s — before the twentieth century had even introduced itself — the Hill already had a school. That's where this story begins.
Not with a grand ceremony or a ribbon-cutting, just a community that decided its children were going to learn. When the Arlington Independent School District was newly formed in 1902, that school became part of it. Two teachers were appointed: George Stevens and Gloria Echols.
Stevens also served as principal. Both of them lived right there in the neighborhood — not strangers passing through, but neighbors. The marker notes their impact in the lives of their young students, and that's the kind of quiet legacy that outlasts almost everything else.
Now, the original building didn't last. A severe storm in 1903 took care of that. But the school didn't go with it.
It kept going. When students reached eighth grade, they moved on to I.M. Terrell High School in Fort Worth — that was the next step, the wider world, Fort Worth being the destination for higher learning.
And the Church of God in Christ furnished additional class space as the community's needs grew. You use what you've got. That's the Hill.
Then came 1954. A new facility opened at 500 Houston Street — eight classrooms, an administrative office, and a cafeteria, with a gymnasium added later. And it was officially named for educator Booker T.
Washington. George Stevens, that same principal from the early days of the district, continued to serve. Some people are just the constant in the equation.
In 1965, Arlington Public Schools began full desegregation. Booker T. Washington School closed.
It became Veda Knox School, a facility for students with special education needs, and was later renamed the Metro Math and Science Academy. The building found new purposes, new students, a new name. But here's what the marker wants you to know, what it closes with: Booker T.
Washington School is remembered as an iconic institution in the Hill. It gave students skills and education that helped them achieve success in their personal and professional lives. Not one generation — generation after generation, going back to the 1890s.
That little school on the Hill, outlasting storms and boundaries and time itself, did exactly what a school is supposed to do.
What the marker says
SERVING THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN STUDENTS OF ARLINGTON, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON SCHOOL WAS A VITAL INSTITUTION IN THE CITY. IT HAD ITS ROOTS IN ARLINGTON’S FIRST BLACK SCHOOL, WHICH WAS IN PLACE BY THE 1890s. THE SCHOOL SERVED THE GROWING AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY KNOWN AS THE HILL, LOCATED NORTHWEST OF THE ORIGINAL TOWN BOUNDARIES. THE CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST FURNISHED ADDITIONAL CLASS SPACE AS NEEDED. IN 1902, THE SCHOOL BECAME PART OF THE NEWLY FORMED ARLINGTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT. GEORGE STEVENS AND GLORIA ECHOLS WERE APPOINTED AS TEACHERS, WITH STEVENS ALSO SERVING AS PRINCIPAL; BOTH LIVED IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND ARE NOTED FOR THEIR IMPACT IN THE LIVES OF THEIR YOUNG STUDENTS. THE ORIGINAL SCHOOL BUILDING WAS REPLACED AFTER A SEVERE 1903 STORM. STUDENTS ATTENDED THE SCHOOL UNTIL EIGHTH GRADE, AT WHICH POINT THEY WENT TO I.M. TERRELL HIGH SCHOOL IN FORT WORTH. A NEW FACILITY OPENED AT 500 HOUSTON STREET IN 1954, OFFICIALLY NAMED FOR EDUCATOR BOOKER T. WASHINGTON. THE BUILDING HAD EIGHT CLASSROOMS, AN ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE, AND A CAFETERIA; A GYMNASIUM WAS ADDED LATER. GEORGE STEVENS CONTINUED TO SERVE AS PRINCIPAL OF THE INSTITUTION. IN 1965, ARLINGTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS BEGAN FULL DESEGREGATION. BOOKER T. WASHINGTON SCHOOL CLOSED AND BECAME VEDA KNOX SCHOOL, A FACILITY FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS. IT WAS LATER RENAMED THE METRO MATH AND SCIENCE ACADEMY. TODAY, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON SCHOOL IS REMEMBERED AS AN ICONIC INSTITUTION IN THE HILL, PROVIDING STUDENTS WITH SKILLS AND EDUCATION THAT WOULD HELP THEM ACHIEVE SUCCESS IN THEIR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL LIVES.