DUANE
Duane's take
The way this story goes, I'm telling it straight from the official marker — so let the record show every word of what follows comes from that inscription. Now settle in, because this one's worth your full attention. Somewhere in Lubbock, in the year 1954, a woman named Lucille Graves decided the children in her community deserved something better than what was being offered to them.
And so she built it herself. She established Mary and Mac Private School — a preschool for African-American students, at a time when private schools for African Americans were rare. That alone tells you something about the woman.
The name itself carries meaning. Mary and Mac — named for a version of the hand-clapping song Mary Mack — and it wasn't chosen lightly. The name emphasized aspirations.
The hope that these students would become contributing members of society. That's not just a school name. That's a mission statement clapped out in rhythm.
Now, every school needs a place to start, and this one started in a church. The teachers received permission from the Reverend A.L. Dunn to hold their first classes in the auditorium of New Hope Baptist Church.
Before long, the school moved again — this time to two small frame houses on the 1300 block of East 24th Street. Small houses. Big ambitions.
Lucille Graves taught those classes herself. Right alongside her husband, Caesar. And as the school grew, other family members joined the faculty too.
This wasn't just a school — it was something the Graves family built with their own hands, their own time, and by the looks of it, their own everything. Because here's the thing about a school that's working: it grows. The students keep coming, the needs keep expanding, and pretty soon two small frame houses aren't enough.
So Caesar Graves and the Mary and Mac Parent-Teacher Association did what communities do when they believe in something — they raised funds. And in 1961, Mary and Mac moved into a newly constructed building at 902 East 28th Street. A new building meant new possibilities.
Mary and Mac began offering junior high and high school courses. The faculty worked multiple positions to keep up with the expanding activities. At its peak, this school — born in a church auditorium, raised in two small houses — served approximately 120 students.
Now, you should know something about Lucille Graves beyond what she did for that school. She was noted for being the first African American accepted into Texas Tech. And she later earned a doctorate from the Inter-Baptist Theological Center of Houston.
Dr. Graves was an activist, an educator, and by any measure, a force. Mary and Mac closed in 1993, shortly after Lucille Graves passed away.
The school she built, that her family sustained, that a whole community poured themselves into — it closed when she did. There's a kind of poetry in that, even if it's the bittersweet kind. But here's where this story lands: the graduates of Mary and Mac Private School have made significant contributions locally, regionally, and throughout the nation.
A preschool started by one woman in 1954, in a church auditorium in Lubbock, Texas — and its reach spread all the way out across this country. Dr. Graves set them clapping, and they never stopped.
What the marker says
In 1954, Lucille Graves established Mary & Mac Private School as a preschool for African-American students. Named for a version of the hand-clapping song “Mary Mack,” emphasizing aspirations for the students to become contributing members of society, the institution offered an alternative to local public schools in a time when private schools for African Americans were rare. Teachers received permission from the Rev. A.L. Dunn to hold their first classes in the auditorium of New Hope Baptist Church, before soon moving to two small frame houses on the 1300 block of East 24th Street. Lucille Graves taught classes along with her husband, Caesar; other family members later joined as faculty, as Graves expanded school services. To meet the needs of the growing school, Caesar Graves and the Mary & Mac Parent-Teacher Association began to raise funds for a new building, and in 1961, the school moved to a newly constructed structure at 902 East 28th Street. Here, Mary & Mac began offering junior high and high school courses. The faculty often worked multiple positions to meet the expanding activities offered at the school. At its peak, Mary & Mac Private School served a student population of approximately 120 students. Mary & Mac closed in 1993, shortly after Lucille Graves passed away. Besides her work with the school, Graves was noted for being the first African American accepted into Texas Tech; she later earned a doctorate from the Inter-Baptist Theological Center of Houston. Today, Dr. Graves is remembered for her activism and for Mary & Mac Private School, whose graduates have made significant contributions locally, regionally and throughout the nation. (2010)