Long School was once located at 2520 Franklin Street in the Near North Side

Near North Side (Omaha, Nebraska)

The Near North Side of Omaha, Nebraska is the neighborhood immediately north of downtown. It forms the nucleus of the city's African-American community, and its name is often synonymous with the entire North Omaha area...

 area of North Omaha

Omaha

Omaha may refer to:*Omaha , a Native American tribe that currently resides in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Nebraska-Places:United States* Omaha, Nebraska* Omaha, Arkansas* Omaha, Georgia* Omaha, Illinois* Omaha, Texas...

, Nebraska

Nebraska

Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

. Long the focal point of the surrounding neighborhood, Long School was one of Omaha's "black schools". In 1952 it was identified as being the only school in Omaha with a 100% African-American

African Americans in Omaha, Nebraska

African Americans in Omaha, Nebraska are central to the development and growth of the 43rd largest city in the United States. The first free black settler in the city arrived in 1854, the year the city was incorporated....

 student body population. The first two African-American teacher

Teacher

A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...

s in public education in Omaha were assigned to Long School in 1940. In 1947 the first African-American principal in Omaha, Eugene Skinner

Eugene Skinner

Eugene Franklin Skinner was an early American settler in Oregon and founder of the city of Eugene, Oregon, which is named for him....

, was appointed to the school.

Building history

Designed by locally renowned architect John Latenser, Sr.

John Latenser, Sr.

John Latenser, Sr. was a Liechtenstein-born American architect whose influential public works in Omaha, Nebraska numbered in the dozens. His original name was Johann Laternser....

, the school was lauded for "decorating and beautifying" its hall when built in 1886. With eight classrooms for kindergarten

Kindergarten

A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...

 through eighth grade

Eighth grade

Eighth grade is a year of education in the United States, Canada, Australia and other nations. Students are usually 13 - 14 years old. The eighth grade is typically the final grade before high school, and the ninth grade of public and private education, following kindergarten and subsequent grades...

, the school cost $25,000 to construct. The building was closed and demolished in the 1980s.

Whitney Young

When Civil Rights Movement

Civil rights movement

The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...

 leader Whitney Young

Whitney Young

Whitney Moore Young Jr. was an American civil rights leader.He spent most of his career working to end employment discrimination in the United States and turning the National Urban League from a relatively passive civil rights organization into one that aggressively fought for equitable access to...

 arrived in Omaha in 1950, Omaha Public Schools

Omaha Public Schools

Omaha Public Schools is the largest school district in the state of Nebraska. This public school district serves a diverse community of more than 46,000 students at over 80 elementary and secondary schools in Omaha, Nebraska...

 employed twelve Black educators. These educators, including several from Long School, quickly taught Young about schools in Omaha. Eugene Skinner, the school's principal, invited Young to speak at the commencement that year.

See also

• Education in North Omaha, Nebraska
• List of public schools in Omaha, Nebraska