First Class

May 13, 2013
When Dunbar High School opened in Washington, D.C., in 1916, it was already a historic institution. The first public high school for black students in the U.S. had its roots in the basement of a black church in 1870 as the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, and its flowering as M Street High School (1891–1916). The school flourished through the mid-20th century, and suffered during the latter half; its history traverses the rise and decline of public education in America’s cities. The school currently has 98% black students and a dismal performance record, but previously Dunbar had 100% black students and many famous graduates: Jean Toomer (1914); Sterling Brown (1918); Charles Drew (1922); and Eleanor Holmes Norton (1955), to name a few. Journalist Stewart’s book, featuring a foreword by Tulane political scientist Melissa Harris-Perry, embraces principals, staff, and teachers, buildings and curricula, public policy debates and internecine ones, through Dunbar’s nearly 150-year history; interviews with alumni are included as well. Worthy as this remarkable history is, it ambles from the chatty to the clunky, from the storyteller’s impulse to the political edge. Nevertheless, Stewart’s question, “What will the newest incarnation of Dunbar be?” remains germane, especially as its new building is scheduled to open in fall 2013. Contemplating Dunbar’s history may offer answers. 25 b&w photos. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

May 15, 2013
Broadcast journalist Stewart examines the legendary reputation for excellence of a historic, all-black Washington, D.C., high school, then documents the decline of that excellence in more recent decades. Since both of her parents were graduates of Dunbar High School and now have successful careers, the author took an interest in the subject. Like so many other proud (and sometimes famous) Dunbar graduates, Stewart's parents felt dismay at how America's first black public high school let standards slip. But at the beginning of the 21st century, Dunbar, founded in 1870, seemed like yet another chaotic inner-city institution, with rowdy students the norm instead of the exception. Stewart is an able historian, and the saga of how blacks and influential whites managed to establish a school of the caliber of Dunbar in a viciously segregated society so soon after the Civil War is extraordinary and inspirational by any measure. The mostly chronological narrative is less lively as Stewart offers a contemporary catalog of educational horrors. So many authors before Stewart have chronicled problems similar to Dunbar's that reading might present a feeling of deja vu for many readers. Stewart persuasively places significant blame on parents of contemporary Dunbar students for showing little or no involvement in the school activities of their children. The director of the marching band told Stewart that he had never met the parents of the participating children. The author suggests that the model of Barack Obama as a black president fails to work for teenagers who have never shown the interest or aptitude for learning subjects that will lead to a college education. A well-reported, passionate study of the triggers for failure and success within American urban education.

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Starred review from July 1, 2013

Since before the Civil War, Washington, DC, has been home to a thriving black middle-class community, so it's of little surprise that the city was the location of the nation's first black public high school: the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, later renamed Dunbar. Veteran journalist Stewart, the daughter of two Dunbar grads, tackles the history of this significant institution in a book filled with juicy quotations and lively asides. Dunbar alumni include the first black member of a U.S. presidential cabinet, the first black U.S. army general, the creator of the modern blood bank, and the first black U.S. senator since Reconstruction. Once a quasi-magnet school that families would move to Washington to attend, Dunbar became just another neighborhood high school after desegregation. Today, Dunbar shares the problems of many urban public high schools: high staff turnover, low test scores, decaying facilities, and a profound lack of hope on the institutional level. VERDICT Stewart's history of a single school also manages to tell the story of black DC, of school desegregation, and of education reform. One need not be a Washington native or a Dunbar grad to appreciate this thought-provoking and thoroughly pleasant history.--Molly McArdle, Library Journal

Copyright 2013 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2013
In 1870, the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth became the first black public high school in the nation, a prized accomplishment for Washington, D.C., as free people of color and newly freed slaves stretched the boundaries that still remained in postslavery America. Later renamed Dunbar High, the school became famous for its highly accomplished graduates, many of whom were the first blacks to enter Ivy League schools and break down barriers in a wide range of professions, from the law to medicine. For more than 80 years, the school maintained legendarily high standards in a segregated school system and developed fiercely loyal, solidly middle-class alumni. But desegregation and changing demographics slowly eroded the reputation of the school until it became just another inner-city school with low achievement and high drop-out rates. Drawing on interviews with alumni, teachers, and students, Stewart recalls the storied history of Dunbar, its part in the tumultuous politics of the D.C. school system, and current efforts to reconstruct the school and revive its former glory. A fascinating account of the legacy of a legendary school.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)