Ruth Harris: A Reticent Disrupter in St. Louis Public Schools’ Stowe Teachers College during Jim Crow Era

Abstract

In 1940, St. Louis Public Schools named Dr. Ruth Harris, the first African American female President of the Stowe Teachers College (now named, Harris–Stowe State University). Like many African American administrators, prior to the Brown v. Board of Education decision, Harris had to creatively find ways to acquire resources. This article is an examination of her community engagement programs for preservice teachers and the African American community. Preservice teachers were intentionally immersed in the communities they would one day teach-in while the community learned from well-known African Americans in a nurturing environment removed from the Jim Crow stigma prevalent during the time. Using the community as classrooms for preservice teachers and the campus for public service revealed one educator’s resourcefulness in teaching the marginalized.