19th Century

  • 1918

    Women teachers were largely successful,and got better pay. Got to go to a higher level of admins.
  • 1930

    Teachers went about their work with less public agitation, but among African-American educators, significant obstacles remained.
  • 1940

    Viola Duval Stewart challenged the unequal pay, and she won her suit.
  • 1945

    Brown suit, brought by parents in Topeka, Kansas, argued that segregated schools were inherently unequal. The Supreme Court agreed by unanimous decision.
  • 1955

    The Court followed up by announcing that schools must desegregate "with all deliberate speed.
  • 1960

    Teachers became more militant, battling for civil rights, community control of schools, and anti-poverty programs.
  • 1970

    Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Board of Education.
  • 1980

    "A Nation at Risk" depicted teachers who were both underqualified and underpaid.
  • 1986

    A follow-up report in "A Nation Prepared," laid the foundations for a new professionalism.
  • 1990

    They remain inspired and challenged by their students.