[Collection of Press Photographs Documenting both Child and Adult Education in New York City, Including "Americanization" Class]

[Various locations around New York City: Chester Studios and others, 1960. Very good.. Eighty-eight black-and-white photographs, most approximately 8 x 10 inches, with five in slightly smaller format. Minor wear, some with adhesive remnants on versos, a few with editorial markings in the image area, most with photo credits and other information on versos. An informative collection of midcentury press photographs capturing the state of mostly public education in New York City. A little more than a dozen images capture young students in the classroom, in the mist of class instruction, studying and writing at their desks or at the chalkboard, presenting (truncated) "new Safety Posters" to the class, and more. A particularly interesting aspect of the youth education photographs is in showing that classes in New York were well integrated by this time. One image shows a starkly-decorated classroom of just seven students and a teacher amidst a few benches at the Talmud School. About half of the photographs feature various school buildings around New York, almost all featuring exteriors of primary and secondary public schools in Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens.

The most notable portion of the photographs, about two dozen, document adult education in the city, most notably featuring language and "Americanization" classes for new citizens, immigrants, and non-English speakers. One image shows a class of about fifteen students in session; a manuscript annotation on the verso describes the class: "Adult Education P.S. 225 - Subject of Class: English to foreign born or to new citizens." Another photograph captures an adult education class in White Plains, with a manuscript notation and a printed label stapled to the verso, both reading, "Americanization Class." Another image depicts a New York City class, with all of the students reading from the same pamphlets as the class in White Plains. Yet another photo shows a teacher presenting basic language lessons on supermarket foods to a class of young adults; the top right portion of the chalkboard reads, "Americanization Beginning English." Other images in the collection show three young Asian-American women reading in front of a language class with the manuscript annotation on the verso reading "Chinese Students;" a young Asian-American man presenting to a class of younger students; ethnically-diverse populations of adult students in the classroom and at registration; adult students engaged in learning at the Avenue R Temple; a small class meeting at P.S. 17 in Manhattan; and other class photos from the City of New York's Adult Education Section. In one photograph, an adult woman is writing a message on a chalkboard under the supervision of her teacher; the message reads, "Our Constitution guarantees freedom and justice." She is in the middle of writing another sentence about "Our Flag...." The dates of the photographs are taken from the earliest and latest dates written on the versos of the images. An interesting and diverse collection of photographs providing an interesting snapshot of education in New York City in the mid-20th century. (Inventory #: 3286)