old Powers G. Porter was the school’s first principal, having for the previous eight years been the principal of Lincoln elementary, a school for black children in Olathe, Kansas. From 1922 to 1955, there would be 29 black teachers and four black principals who served at Dunbar, including Caldwell, who would go on to serve three terms as Salina’s first AfricanAmerican mayor and then as a state representative. Over the years, a number of African-American employees also worked as grounds and maintenance staff, secretaries and paraprofessionals. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that “separate but equal” schools for the races were unconstitutional. Soon after, Dunbar became integrated, along with similar schools throughout the state. But an immediate drop in enrollment the following year forced the school to close at the end of the 1955-56 school year. In 1958, Saint Francis Boys’ Homes, now Saint Francis Community Services, Inc., purchased the property along Elm Street between Second and Front Streets. For more than 56 years, Saint Francis has remained an excellent steward of the Dunbar building and grounds. The organization was started in 1945 by Father Robert Mize Jr., who acquired the former “poor farm” in Ellsworth and opened a facility for disadvantaged young men. According to Saint Francis, the organization now serves more than 9,000 children and their families, and employs about 1,000 people in four states. As in its Dunbar days, the building is dedicated to the safety and welfare of youth. But for those with a connection to Dunbar, memories of the school have remained strong since its closing. Through the efforts of the alumni, the red brick building that became important to Salina’s African-American community was designated a local Heritage Conservation Landmark in 1998. A committee then raised funds to erect a marker on the northeast corner of Elm and Front Streets. The City of Salina landscaped the area around the monument and added a bench. In the summer of 1990, alumni, teachers and staff gathered for their first reunion. It was so successful that an alumni association sprang to life, and now members plan reunions every three years. Jennifer Gordon, a public elementary school principal in Topeka whose mother and brother attended Dunbar, developed and maintains a Facebook page and a website for the group at dunbarschoolsalina.org. The late Ron Kizer, recalling his school years at Dunbar in a 1998 Salina Journal article, expressed the sentiments of many. “Dunbar gave us something to hold dear forever. It gave us something to be proud of and something for Salina to be proud of, too.”
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Sunflower living spring 2015
785.309.0900 | www.SalinaSurgicalArts.com
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102 N. Main
Beautiful Downtown Lindsborg
785-227-2015
sundstromevents.com
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