![[logo]](http://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaead/logos/lva.jpg)
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia© 2012 By The Library of Virginia. All Rights Reserved.
Processed by: Erin Faison
Privacy protected information is considered closed for 75 years after date of record creation. Types of records restricted include but are not limited to: medical information, social security numbers, and student transcripts. Restricted material has been redacted and/or sealed but has not been removed from the collection.
There are no restrictions.
Records of the Virginia Pupil Placement Board, 1957-1966. Accession 26517, State records collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va.
Accession 26517 was transfered by the Virginia Pupil Placement Board, 29-30 June 1966.
The creation of Virginia's Pupil Placement Board was approved by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on September 29, 1956. The Pupil Placement Act was one part of a comprehensive package of legislation passed during the 1956 special session to negate and counteract the effects of the opinion expressed by the U.S. Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education (1954). The Brown decision marked the end of legal segregation in public schools by concluding that separate facilities for students of different races are inherently unequal and thus in violation of the fourteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In 1955 the U.S. Supreme Court revisited the Brown decision to provide a timeline for the integration of pubic schools. The court left much room for interpretation by stating that schools should be integrated, "with all deliberate speed."
In response to the Brown cases, U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd (D-Virginia) coined the term for what would become Virginia's overarching integration policy when he stated, "If we can organize the Southern States for massive resistance to this order I think that in time the rest of the country will realize that racial integration is not going to be accepted in the South." Virginia's "Massive Resistance" policy ran counter to the Supreme Court's order for public schools to integrate "with all deliberate speed" by using state law to hopelessly hinder integration and thus thwart the intent of the court.
The Pupil Placement Board, as one arm of the policy of Massive Resistance was charged with assigning, enrolling, or placing students to and in public schools. The Pupil Placement Board consisted of three members appointed by the Governor. Pupil placement was a task formerly under the control of school boards and division superintendents. The board's authorizing legislation required members to take several factors into consideration when placing a pupil in a school. Factors included but were not limited to the health of the pupil, his or her aptitudes, the availability of transportation, and, "such other relevant matters as may be pertinent to the efficient operation of the schools or indicate a clear and present danger to the public peace and tranquility affecting the safety or welfare of the citizens of such school district." Students who were already in school before the board's creation were not obligated to apply for placement. Thus, the board only oversaw the placement of students who sought to move from one school to another or who were applying to attend school for the first time.
In December of 1956, Governor Thomas B. Stanley appointed Hugh V. White, Beverly H. Randolph Jr., and Andrew A. Farley to serve as the Pupil Placement Board. White was employed as Superintendent of Schools for Nansemond County beginning in 1934, he also served as president of the Virginia Principals Association and on the Superintendent Advisory Committee to the State Superintendent of Public Institutions. Randolph, a Richmond City native and former member of the House of Delegates, who at the time of his placement board membership, was an attorney in Charles City County. Farley was the Vice President and General Manager of the Register Publishing Company in Danville, the company was responsible for the "Danville Register" and "Danville Bee," he also served on the State Board of Conservative Development. From the beginning the placement board was frustrated by legal challenges from federal courts and by local school boards that increasingly tended to ignore the board's decisions.
All three board members served from the board's creation until they tendered a collective resignation effective in early 1960. Their resignations followed an Act of the General Assembly approved on April 28, 1959 that returned the responsibility of pupil placement to localities. Speaking before the General Assembly On January 28, 1959, Governor James Lindsay Almond, Jr. spoke on behalf of the Pupil Placement Board and defended it against the charge that it served as an impediment to integration. However, Governor Almond concluded that Virginia must, "repeal...laws that have been finally adjudged to be unconstitutional or have proven ineffective." He added that Virginia must, "prepare for the future by removing from our statutes that which those who oppose our way of life have used as a virus to contaminate the whole." He urged the assembly to reconsider laws governing education, including laws governing the transfer of pupils from school to school.
Following the resignation of the board's membership, the Journal of the Senate enrolled House Joint Resolution 91 on March 10, 1960, acknowledging the board's mass resignation, "as a result of circumstances which would render their task almost impossible of performance." In July of 1960 the original members were replaced by Governor Almond with Earnest J. Oglesby, Edward T. Justis, and Alfred L. Wingo. Oglesby at the time of his appointment he was a professor of Mathematics at the University of Virginia. In Albemarle County he served on the Board of Trustees at the Miller school, as well as, the President of the Defenders of State Sovereignty and Individual Liberties (a segregationist organization begun in Petersburg which proposed to become an advocacy group for whites much as the NAACP had done for African Americans). Justis, a Chesterfield County native worked as a science teacher and director of athletics at Chester High School and principal of Midlothian High School before joining the Department of Education in 1942, where he was eventually named Assistant State Supervisor of Rehabilitation. Wingo, born in Amelia County; worked as a counselor at Farmville State Teaching College before becoming Conductor of Guidance, Testing, Research and Surveys for the Department of Education in 1944. Even with the loss of most of its power and the effective end of the "Massive Resistance" movement in 1959, the Pupil Placement Board remained in existence for another seven years until it was finally abolished by an act of the General Assembly in 1966.
This collection includes, but is not limited to, incoming and outgoing correspondence, memorandums, maps, reports, trail transcripts, personnel files, applications, transfer requests, calendars and newspaper clippings. Correspondents include, but are not limited to, parents, school superintendents, school principals, and school boards. Topics discussed include: policies and procedures, desegregation, education laws, student records, demography, and supreme court decisions. Each series is described in more detail within the finding aid.
This collection is arranged into the following series:
Series I: Correspondence and Subject Files Series II: Personnel Records Series III: Minutes Series IV: Legal Files Series V: Publications Series VI: Maps Series VII: ApplicationsThe bulk of this subseries contains routine correspondence of the Pupil Placement Board, such as, memorandums to and from board members, information regarding applications, the student assignment process, and desegregation plans developed by school boards throughout the state. Of particular interest in this subseries are letters written in support and condemnation of segregation.
Arragned alphabetically by folder title.
This subseries contains announcements from state agencies, the bulk of which are mass mailings.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by agency title.
The bulk of this subseries contains correspondence regarding Pupil Placement Board application forms, the majority of which are form memorandums from the board to the city listed on the folder in regard to the number student applications required to serve the area, or issues regarding a specified application. There is also correspondence concerning; specific students, placement issues within school districts, administrative transfers, and lists containing the names of students whose birth certificates were viewed.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically, thereunder chronologically.
The bulk of this subseries contains correspondence regarding Pupil Placement Board application forms, the majority of which are form memorandums from the board to the county listed on the folder in regard to the number student applications required to serve the area, or issues regarding a specified application. There is also correspondence concerning; specific students, placement issues within school districts, administrative transfers, and lists containing the names of students whose birth certificates were viewed.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by county name, thereunder chronologically.
This subseries contains forms sent by the Pupil Placement Board regarding student transfers, the majority of which are form memorandums stating either approved or denied. Denied files may contain a copy of the student's application, the originals of these applications can be found in the Application series, Special subseries (boxes 87-105), applications the board "did not consider" are interfiled with those denied. This subseries also contains, school board transfers, parent letters requesting transfer, and documents relating to lawsuits. Not all cities are represented and some requests have more documentation than others. Restricted envelopes contain student test scores and/or grades and are to remain sealed for 75 years from the date of creation in accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Codes of Virginia 2.2-3705.4 and 2.2-3705.1.
Folders are arranged alphabetically by location, forms within the folders are arranged alphabetically by students last name.
This subseries contains forms sent by the Pupil Placement Board regarding student transfers, the majority of which are memorandums stating either approved or denied. Denied files may contain a copy of the student's application, the originals of these applications can be found in the Application series, Special subseries (boxes 87-105), applications the board "did not consider" are interfiled with those denied. This series also contains school board transfers, parent letters requesting transfer, and documents relating to lawsuits. Not all Counties are represented and some requests have more documentation than others. The County of King William along with King and Queen contain letters which directly reference "negro" and "indian" students. Restricted envelopes contain student test scores and/or grades and are to remain sealed for 75 years from the date of creation in accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Codes of Virginia 2.2-3705.4 and 2.2-3705.1.
Folders are arranged alphabetically by location, forms within the folders are arranged alphabetically by students last name.
This subseries contains the work books maintained by the office staff, which consist mainly of school names listed alphabetically by location, with cities listed first, followed by counties.
Box 54 contains the work books of an unknown employee, with no dates given, box 55 is arranged alphabetically by the last name of the employee who maintained the work book. The pages within each note book are arranged alphabetically with cities listed before counties.
This subseries consists of items related to routine clerical functions of the board's office staff.
This box contains note cards which list a location, childs name, date of transfer, and which school the child was transfered to, along with the reason for the transfer. (Bulk)
The cards in this box are arranged alphabetically by location, thereunder by students last name.
The bulk of this box contains note cards which list a location, childs name, date of transfer, and which school the child was transfered to, along with the reason for the transfer.
The cards in this box are arranged alphabetically by location, thereunder by students last name.
This box contains cards which are headed by a location name, followed by a list of dates.
The cards in this box are arranged alphabetically by location.
This series contains personnel documents such as salary reports and job applications for the members of the board, as well as, the office staff. There are also documents which describe each clerical position, in addition to memorandums related to office matters.
Arranged alphabetically by folder title.
This series contains the minutes from the board's meetings; the books contain the official draft of the minutes as the board approved of them, dating from January of 1957 to the boards dissolution in June of 1966. The Board Meeting files contain drafts of the minutes, the meeting agenda and other documents related to that meetings proceedings.
This series is arranged chronologically.
This series contains the legal files of the Pupil Placement Board created by, Adolphus B. Scott, official legal council. Scott served the board from 1957 until his death in 1964, after Scott's death the board did not hire a replacement attorney, as the board had no authority by that time.
This subseries contains; subpoenas, motions, briefs, memorandums, and limited official trial transcripts, all relating to suits filed against the board or school board in which African-American studens have sought placement in a "White's Only" school. Many of the suits contain multiple plaintiffs, often being known by the student whose name came first alphabetically. Some of the memorandums discuss the rulings made by Judge Walter E. Hoffman, who served the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, in Norfolk. Judge Hoffman was elected to the Norfolk court by President Eisenhower, and considered it his duty to up hold the precedent set by the national government in regard to desegregation.
This collection is arranged alphabetically by location. Cities and counties are filled together, counties have been labled as such. Civil Action case numbers accompany folder titles.
This subseries contains correspondence recieved and sent by the office of attorney Adolphus B. Scott.
This subseries is arranged by case file, as recieved by the agency.
Within this subseries are official transcripts from public hearings which were held in order to decisivly settle placement protests.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by location, with counties appearing in box 82 and cities in box 83.
This subseries contains student education records, comprized of various test scores and report cards. Restricted envelopes contain student test scores and/or grades and are to remain sealed for 75 years from the date of creation in accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Codes of Virginia 2.2-3705.4 and 2.2-3705.1. Folders are arranged alphabetically by location, forms within the folders are arranged alphabetically by students last name
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by student last names.
This series contains maps which have locations of schools and often applicants's homes marked on them, sometimes there is one map per student other times there is one map with all locations. These maps were, generally, created to illustrate the distance from the school an applicant was currently enrolled and the one they were requesting transfer to.
This series is arranged alphabetically by location, cities and counties are combined. This box also contains oversized materials which have been seperated from their parent folders.
Two subseries. This series contains applications for student placement. It is the largest series in the collection as the placement of students represents the main function of the Pupil Placement Board. The applications were completed by parents or guardians who desired to either place a new student in a Virginia school or move a current student to a different school. Each application is the top page of a triplicate form that includes the name of the student to be placed, the county for which enrollment is requested, the year the student is to be enrolled, the student's address, years of school attendance, sex, birthdate, health status, and any aptitudes. The applications do not address race but some are appended with a particular student's race noted. A section at the bottom of each certificate reserved for the use of the local school board contains space for comments concerning the pupil and the placement recommendation. The board section also contains the signatures of representatives from the state school board, the local school board, the school principal, and a rubber stamp impression of Birchel S. Hilton signature, the executive secretary of the Pupil Placement Board. Hilton served as Superintendent of Shenandoah County Schools and subsequently resigned his position after a very public battle with the county's school board over budget issues and his connections to the Department of Education, months later he joined the Pupil Placement Board.
This subseries contains the applications the Pupil Placement Board referred to as "Special," these applications belonged to the students whose parents desired their children to receive a desegregated and equal public education and were not willing to wait for the state to voluntarily integrate schools. The special applications often contain a hand written note stating whether the transfer was approved, denied, or not considered. Depending upon location applications were also accompanied by a copy of an administrative transfer, or there were included lists of all transfers with students name, school where student was previously enrolled and location of current enrollment. There are also multiple application for the same student, usually from different years indicating the parent continued to petition for a transfer. A large number of applications contain the phrase "I do not wish my child to attend a racially segregated school," so something similar.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by location. The folder for each location is then arranged alphabetically by student's last name, thereunder by first name. Applications are not chronological, except if there is more than one for a single student.
This subseries contains the applications the Pupil Placement Board considered routine, likely they are applications of students who sought placement in a school the board deemed appropriate. This does not mean that these applications contain no added notations; related records are included with the applications in this subseries and are filed with the applications they accompany. Examples of such records include correspondence explaining the lack of a birth certificate, letters of introduction, and student test score sheets. The test scores are restricted and sealed but remain in the collection. Applications for students in the City of Petersburg for school years 1960-1961 and 1961-1962 and the Counties of Brunswick and Chesterfield include tentative placement slips addressed to school principals. The slips serve to notify a school principal of a student's preliminary placement in their school until a birth certificate could be obtained or a complete application could be submitted and approved by the Pupil Placement Board. Applications for students coming from outside Virginia or requesting enrollment for the first time were originally submitted with birth certificates. Though the birth certificates are no longer in the collection, some applications feature certificate numbers written in the margin. Many of the Norfolk City applications from 1962-1964 include an attached form which contains the birth certificate information of the student, as well as, both parents full name and place of birth. A parent/guardian had to sign the form in addition to the school's principal to verify the information given as accurate.
Fewer applications still were signed along with the phrase "Under Protest" accompanying the parent/guardians signature, but since these were filed as routine these parents likely objected to the existence of the board, not the placement of their child. There are also multiple applications for some students, usually the only difference is the school listed on the form, others are identical, but often there are discrepancies from application to application, such as, a student's name having two spellings (ex. Laurie, Lori or Stephen, Steven, Y and I are also used interchangeably Lynda, Linda, or IE for Y Sally, Sallie, last names also contain these mistakes but are not as easily caught since the forms are alphabetized), a birth date can also differ by month or year. This subseries contains applications dating from the 1960-1961 school year to the 1965-1966 school year. For unknown reasons there are some counties missing, as well as the bulk of applications for the 1960-1961 school year. It may be that some of the applications submitted for students seeking enrollment during the 1960-1961 school year were deferred until the 1961-1962 school year.
A minimal number of applications have been restricted, a redacted copy of the application has been filed along with an envelope containing the sealed orginial. Applications have been sealed as personal information under code of Virginia 18.2-186.3, education records under Code of Virginia 2.2-3705.4(2) or 2.2-3705.1 (4) and Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), as well as social services records under Code of Virginia 2.2-3705.5 and 63.2(102-104).
This subseries is arranged first by the school year for which enrollment is requested, thereunder alphabetically by city or county, and thereunder alphabetically by the pupil's last name, then first name, and for students with multiple application arrangement is chronologically.
This subseries contains Richmond City Public School registrations forms, the forms contains students name, address, a vaccinations record, parents names and occupations, as well as, current and prior schools. These education records have been restricted and are to remain sealed for 75 years from their date of creation in accordance with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Codes of Virginia 2.2-3705.4 and 2.2-3705.1
This subseries is arranged alphabetically by student's last name.
This subseries consists of published materials collected by the board, such as, briefs, directories, magazine articles and public school laws.
This subseries is arranged alphabetically
This subseries contains newspaper clippings which were collected by the board from papers throughout Virginia, with a large percentage of materials being taken from the Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond News Leader, and the Freelance Star. Most articles are labled as to which newspaper and on what date the article was published. The clippings are grouped by date not publication, the majority of articles make some reference to the Pupil Placement Board, with the relevant information often being underlined. Other common topics include virginia schools, desgregation, protests, federal court rulings, Dr. Martin Luther king, Freedom Riders, Little Rock, and the NAACP.
The bulk of the clippings from 1958 are in regard to desegregation in Little Rock, or the struggles of Arlington and Norfolk. Many articles also refer to the DeFebio case, in which a white mother refused to sign the placement applications for her two sons resulting in the children being denied admitance to public school, the case eventually reached the United States Court of Appeals (brief 4753 can be found in box ? folder 5). Articles from March of 1960 followed the resignation of the original Pupil Placement Board, and the resulting appointments of new members in July. 1966 contains articles relating to increased integration throughout the state, not only schools but in the work place as well as, the actions of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) are also covered.
This collection is arranged Chronologically.