History of Public Education By cannonwilton 1837 During the times of the 13 colonies, only larger towns in New England were required to build schools. 1837 Horace Mann introduces school system the revolutionizes Education. 1855 A law is passed to allow integrated schools in Massachusetts 1900 50% of children were in school 1920 Schools had been opening at an all time rate. 1930 With the Great Depression, a federal law was finally passed that banned child labor. All schools required attendance. 1957 Arkansas Governor calls out National Guard, rather than allowing 9 African Americans to integrate into a High School 1964 The Civil Rights Act states schools will lose federal funding if they refuse to desegregate their schools. 1974 The federal government published new teaching materials in 70 languages and allocated $68 million for bilingual programs. 1980 Nearly the entire school-age population was enrolled 1990 A small number of low income students were allowed to attend private school at taxpayers expense. 1995 By this time the education industry was worth $300 billion a year.