This sixteen-page history of Berkeley’s Black House—from its creation in 1970 to its “liquidation” in 1973 under the pressure of the federal Office of Civil Rights—is an excerpt from the more comprehensive report on all the schools that fell under the umbrella of the Berkeley Experimental Schools Project (BESP).
The Berkeley Revolution
A digital archive of the East Bay's transformation in the late-1960s & 1970s
History of Black House
Date: 11/1976
Citation:
Institute for Scientific Analysis,”The Life and Fate of Individual Alternative Schools in the Berkeley Experimental Schools Project,” volume II of Educational R&D and the Case of Berkeley’s Experimental Schools, report prepared for US Department of Health Education and Welfare National Institute of Education, November 1976, 1-16.
Additional Notes:
For the full sixteen-page excerpt on Black House, please click the link below.
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1. Implementing Desegregation (1967-1970)
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Berkeley’s Yellow School Buses to Become Symbol of Integration
–3/4/1967–Berkeley took the lead with a two-way busing plan, despite attacks from Republicans
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MLK’s Foreword to Neil Sullivan’s Now Is the Time
–9/1/1967–Frustrated by the slow progress of desegregation, MLK found hope in Berkeley's school system
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$349,870 Approved by State For ’68 ESEA School Program Here
–12/16/1967–Federal funds were channeled to programs for Berkeley's poorer children
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Board Adopts New Program on Hiring of Negro Teachers
–1/3/68–School desegregation in Berkeley meant programmatic efforts to hire more black teachers
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Berkeley ’68
–03/31/1968–Five months before the buses would roll, the BUSD explained how school desegregation would work
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Negro History Taught at All School Levels
–5/15/68–A full desegregation effort meant desegregating the curriculum too
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On The Way
–8/31/1968–On the eve of the buses rolling, the school district laid out how it and the larger community had prepared
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Berkeley’s School Integration Program Proceeds Smoothly
–9/2/1968–On the advent of the new busing program, the LA Times found cause for optimism
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How School Busing Works in One Town
–9/27/1970–The New York Times Magazine sympathetically appraised Berkeley's desegregation efforts
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School Desegregation in Berkeley
–8/1977–From the US Commission on Civil Rights, an account and positive appraisal of Berkeley's desegregation efforts
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Berkeley School Desegregation through the Eyes of Carol Sibley
–3/24/2010–A video narrating Berkeley's school desegregation, produced by a friend of a pioneering School Board member
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2. An Age of Educational Experiment (1968-1973)
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Black Studies formed at Berkeley High
–6/30/1968–Berkeley High established the first Black Studies program in the Bay Area
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Performing Arts Group Creates Model School
–12/31/68–Berkeley's first experimental public school: a new "Community High" that would build relationships between students and locals
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Negro Educator Group Endorses Black House
–3/2/71–The Oakland-based Black Aces articulated the rationale for Berkeley's "Black House"
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Asian Student Retreat
–5/31/71–From Berkeley High's 1971 yearbook, a poem, portraits, and reflections on an Asian Studies retreat
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Alternative Schools for Minority Students
–5/31/73–A lengthy consideration, from a civil rights law perspective, of Berkeley's Black House and Casa de la Raza
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Agora
–5/31/74–An experimental school that sought to ground Berkeley high schoolers in democratic practice and activism
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Genesis
–5/31/74–The experimental Genesis High School sought to temper hierarchies between students and teachers in a multiracial setting
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History of Black House
–11/1976–The vision of Black House, and how it collapsed under pressure
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History of Casa de la Raza
–11/1976–The short life of an experiment in Chicano-centered education
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Educational R&D and Berkeley’s Experimental Schools (Vol. 1)
–11/30/1976–What happened with Berkeley's 23 alternative schools? A 580-page study gives a fine-grained answer
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Educational R&D and Berkeley’s Experimental Schools (Vol. 2)
–11/30/1976–Part two of an in-depth history of the 23 new schools created during Berkeley's experimental period
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3. The Federal Government Pushes Back: Experimental Schools Under Pressure (1971-1977)
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Negro Educator Group Endorses Black House
–3/2/71–The Oakland-based Black Aces articulated the rationale for Berkeley's "Black House"
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Decision Due on Alternative Schools
–12/10/71–The BUSD fought a federal effort to shut down Black House and Casa de la Raza
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Ethnic School Plan in Berkeley Given Civil Rights Warning
–4/21/1972–The federal government questioned the rationale behind Berkeley's Black House and Casa de la Raza
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Alternative Schools for Minority Students
–5/31/73–A lengthy consideration, from a civil rights law perspective, of Berkeley's Black House and Casa de la Raza
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Berkeley College Prep A Success
–06/18/1975–A different narrative about minority achievement and experimental schools.
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Educational R&D and Berkeley’s Experimental Schools (Vol. 1)
–11/30/1976–What happened with Berkeley's 23 alternative schools? A 580-page study gives a fine-grained answer
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Educational R&D and Berkeley’s Experimental Schools (Vol. 2)
–11/30/1976–Part two of an in-depth history of the 23 new schools created during Berkeley's experimental period
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Black Studies Loss Criticized at Berkeley High School
–9/28/77–The head of Berkeley High's Af-Am program defended the integrity and openness of his program
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4. The 1973 Election: A New School Board, A New City Council
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Amendment M
–11/07/1972–A last ditch effort to enact runoff elections fell short
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School Labor Agreement to Wait for Election
–04/04/1973–The status of certified employees and of black principals made for a very hot school board meeting
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YES on Charter Measure
–04/05/73–The Gazette supported a salary increase for school board directors
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Gene Roh Fights For Quality Education
–04/05/1973–Candidate Gene Roh, probation officer and concerned citizen, threw his hat in the ring.
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School Board Must Face Four Major Issues Here
–04/9/73–The School Board Director laid out the critical problems the new school board would face
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The Berkeley Daily Gazette Endorses Fraenkel-Conrat and Roh
–04/09/1973–"A broad base of citizens supports the candidacies of both Mrs. Fraenkel-Conrat and Gene Roh."
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April Coalition Materials Plastered on Mailboxes
–04/10/73–"The Greater Berkeley Community" shook its fist at radical candidates for City Council
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Berkeley City Council Voting Record
–04/11/73–A curated account of city council voting records prepared by the Berkeley League of Women Voters.
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Berkeley’s Outlook Hardly Promising
–04/13/73–Three columns of discontent from moderate and conservative Berkeleyans.
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School Board Advertisement
–04/16/1973–More conservative school board candidates were touted as the only candidates with the right "intellectual capacity" for the job
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Only One Council Radical; Pot Wins, Split on Police
–04/18/73–The results of the 1973 election as announced by The Berkeley Daily Gazette.
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5. Racial Justice and Labor Unrest in a Time of Pinched Budgets (1973-1975)
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Teacher Here Says Berkeley Schools Won’t Hire Whites
–04/05/1973–Beatrice Tobias predicted "the end of decent public education"
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Schools Hiring Policy Unchanged
–04/20/1973–Director Samuel Markowitz's bid to end formal affirmative action hiring policies fell short
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Special Meeting on Negotiations with Bus Drivers
–9/25/73–Minutes from a special school board meeting, convened to address the bus drivers' job action
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Bus Drivers ‘Sick’
–10/73–A largely black and female workforce took action to achieve pay equity
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“Teachers Vote ‘No’ to Strike”
–04/03/1975–Disorder between Berkeley's many teacher organizations and their respective ballots contributes to frustration with negotiations.
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School Turmoil Finally Over
–04/09/1975–Berkeley teachers appeared to have reached an agreement on their 1975-1976 contract
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School Specialists To Fill Teacher Vacancies
–04/16/1975–Superintendent Wilson seeks to slim out the teacher and administrative base.
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6. The Budget Implodes: The Teachers Strike and Its Aftermath (1975-1976)
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Administrative Staff Cut
–04/02/1975–Superintendent Wilson recommended cuts to administrators involved in early educational development
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School Fine For Administrators
–04/03/1975–The administration of experimental schools once again proved problematic for the district
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Bill Thomas Resigns
–06/17/1975–Looming deficits prompted the district's business manager to resign under a cloud
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Berkeley Teachers Strike Over Pay Cut
–9/4/1975–Cutbacks triggered the first teachers' strike in Berkeley city history
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Teachers Strikes in 11 States Keep Million Pupils Home
–9/6/75–When Berkeley teachers walked out, they were part of a wave of labor protest
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Win Some, Lose Some
–10/31/75–The teachers' strike was a draw, according to the Barb's city-beat reporter
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Proposal to Settle Strike ‘Vindicates’ Teacher Stand
–10/31/75–The resolution of the Berkeley teachers' strike was a victory, said the California AFL-CIO
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Berkeley Teachers Strike
–Winter 1975-76–From the Weather Underground, a critical and radical take on the Berkeley teachers' strike
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Weather Critique of Teacher Strike
–1/16/1976–The Barb on the fractures that made the teachers' strike difficult
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School Board Nixes Tax Hike Vote
–03/02/1976–Director Louise Stoll's proposal to put a tax-rate hike on the ballot fell short
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“Shenanigans but no fraud”
–03/03/1976–An independent audit of BUSD's budget practices found something funny with the money, but no illegal activity.
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Thomas Responds to Auditors
–03/05/1976–Thomas responds to his detractors, laying the blame for the budget crisis squarely at the feet of the school board and superintendent.
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School Expenses Error Discovered
–03/13/1976–A half-million dollar overestimate in expenses potentially halved the budget deficit
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7. The Test Gap: Perceptions of Minority Achievement
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“Berkeley’s ‘Under-Educated’ Blacks”
–04/19/1973–Harriet G. Jenkins, assistant schools superintendent, submits a list of recommendations to improve the district's record on minority achievement.
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School Board Considering Plan to Help Minority Achievement
–04/25/1973–The school board and their audience "had harsh words for the report"
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Malcolm X Celebration
–05/14/1975–Berkeley's Black Studies program held an arts celebration to remember
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Berkeley College Prep A Success
–06/18/1975–A different narrative about minority achievement and experimental schools.
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Giving Children the Gift of Identity
–12/17/1975–Black children's literature advocates for positive self-esteem, not just reading comprehension.
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8. Eight Years After the Buses Rolled: Conflicting Appraisals (1976-77)
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“Desegregation is Failing to Meet Education Goals”
–03/17/1976–The Berkeley Gazette put a strongly negative spin on a superintendent's report on desegregation
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Desegregation’s Results: Berkeley No Longer Has a Siberia
–4/21/1976–The black-oriented Oakland Post offered a positive take on school desegregation in Berkeley
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Berkeley and Busing—Still Short of Aims
–5/20/1976–Eight years after the buses rolled, a LA Times reporter suggested the project of school desegregation had become ever more complicated
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Schools Win Praise While Losing Ground
–9/10/1976–Activists disputed the Civil Rights Commission's initial positive take on the Berkeley schools
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School Desegregation in Berkeley
–8/1977–From the US Commission on Civil Rights, an account and positive appraisal of Berkeley's desegregation efforts
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