"Education Summers" Internship Program Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education

About this grant

Fifty years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in "Brown v. Board of Education," signalled the end of racial segregation in education in the South and heralded a new era of activism to combat discrimination in all forms. In reality, the decision was about the rights of all people to have fair access to a quality education. Today, most college students and young people in general are unaware of the importance of the "Brown" decision or lack an understanding of continuing local, state and national efforts to improve the quality of and access to education.Funding will provide a multi-racial, multi-ethnic group of talented students enrolled in southern colleges and universities with an opportunity to learn about past and contemporary patterns of educational inequality, and the many ways in which policy institutions, community-based groups, government and educators are working to close the achievement gap. Students will be placed in community groups and organizations, as well as public agencies and other nonprofit organizations, to work on issues of education reform, policy development and equity.The Southern Education Foundation, created in 1937, strives to advance educational opportunity by addressing racial and economic inequities, and stringent education standards.