In Honor of Thelma DeWitty
As our students head back to school after the new year, Youngstown takes a moment to reflect on and celebrate the life of Thelma DeWitty, one of the first two African American teachers hired by Seattle Public
Schools.
Right on the heels of WWII, the struggle for equality among women and minorities were some of the crucial themes of the period. While segregation was institutionally recognized in the south, Seattle’s Frank B. Cooper School catered to American newcomers, with 80 percent of the student body part of a racial minority.
In 1947, with the help of the Urban League, NAACP, Civic Unity Committee, and Christian Friends for Racial Equality, in a historic move, an African American was add to Seattle’s Public School teaching staff. Thelma DeWitty was commissioned as a second grade teacher at the Frank B. Cooper School.
Although the question of racial discrimination was a concern, Seattle graciously embraced the Texas native. Her contribution pioneered the way for five more black teachers added to Seattle Public Schools’ faculty by the end of 1947. Besides working as a school teacher, she served as president of Seattle’s NAACP chapter and was on the board of Washington State Board Against Discrimination and the City Board of Theater Supervisors, and she is the namesake for Youngstown’s Thelma DeWitty Theater.
The old Cooper School building, now Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, was made a historical landmark in part because of DeWitty’s association with the school. In honor of her birthday this month, we celebrate her accomplishments and legacy in Seattle’s history.