Louise Archer Elementary School

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Louise Archer Elementary School
Louise Archer Elementary School, Vienna VA, Dec 2022.jpg
Louise Archer in December 2022
Louise Archer Elementary School
324 Nutley Street N.W.
Vienna, Virginia 22180, U.S.
Information
Type Public school
MottoWhere The Sun Always Shines
Established1867 [1]
School district Fairfax County Public Schools
NCES District ID 5101260 [2]
NCES School ID 510126000529 [3]
PrincipalMichelle Makrigiorgos
Enrollment587
Student to teacher ratio14.84
ColorsYellow and Blue
Pyramid James Madison High School
Previous nameVienna Colored School (until 1950)
Website http://www.fcps.edu/LouiseArcherES/
Louise Archer Elementary School sign, Vienna VA, Dec 2022 Louise Archer Elementary School sign, Vienna VA, Dec 2022.jpg
Louise Archer Elementary School sign, Vienna VA, Dec 2022

Louise Archer Elementary School is a public elementary school in Vienna, Virginia, United States, and is part of Fairfax County Public Schools. Founded in 1867 as a school for African-American children, it is designated by Fairfax County as an elementary school center for advanced academic programs. [4]

Contents

History

The school was originally established in 1867 as the Vienna Colored School, making it the first school for African-American children in Fairfax County. [1] Prior to its founding, African-American children in the area were required to travel daily to Washington D.C. to attend school. In 1939, the school relocated to its current site, which was then a predominantly Black neighborhood. [5]

Louise Archer served as the school's principal [6] and taught alongside two other teachers. In addition to her instructional duties, she provided meals for all students. During the early 1940s, the school lacked running water, the only available sources was Salisbury Spring, located approximately one mile away. Male students were tasked with fetching water, while Archer prepared meals on a potbellied stove. The original school building now forms part of the northern section of the campus near the cafeteria. [7]

In 1950, the school was officially renamed Louise Archer Elementary School. [8]

In the late 1960s, Duke Ellington and his trio performed at the school at the invitation of the band teacher at that time, Philmore Hall, who had previously been Ellington's trumpet instructor. [9]

Advanced Academic Program

Louise Archer Elementary School offers a level IV Advanced Academics Program (AAP), which begins in the third grade.

Chess Club

During the 2009 school year, the Louise Archer Chess Club earned seven trophies and awards. That year, the school placed third nationally in a spring 2009 tournament and achieved a strong showing in another national chess competition. The school also won the Kent Gardens Cup in the previous year and consecutively from 2005 through 2012.

WLATV

Morning announcements and school news are broadcast on WLATV, a closed-circuit television channel operated by select 5th and 6th grade students.

Notable attendees

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Rediscovering History". Connectionnewspapers.com. February 8, 2006. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Fairfax County Public Schools". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Search for Public Schools - Louise Archer Elementary School (510126000529)". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Advanced Academic Programs." Fairfax County Public Schools site Archived 2010-09-24 at the Wayback Machine (accessed 18 Sept 2011)
  5. ↑ "Remembering Segregation in McLean and Vienna," The Connection, 12 March 2014
  6. ↑ "Louise A. Reeves Archer," Virginia Women in History
  7. ↑ Baker, Peter (March 16, 1989). "School Born of Struggle Honors Proud Past". Washington Post .
  8. ↑ Commonwealth of Virginia, HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 365 Commending Louise Archer Elementary School. Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 28, 2014. Agreed to by the Senate, March 5, 2014
  9. ↑ "The Tuesday Conversation: Jamie Broumas," Gazette.net, 23 November 2010

38°53′56.94″N77°16′37.88″W / 38.8991500°N 77.2771889°W / 38.8991500; -77.2771889

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