Photo

Photo detail

Ferdinand Day chats with former school board member Arthur Peabody at a Senior Services of Alexandria fundraiser in 2013.

Stories this photo appears in:

Tease photo

Alexandria Civil Rights Pioneer Ferdinand Day Dies

The force behind the philosophy of “Every Student Counts.”

When Ferdinand Day was born in 1918, Virginia had just passed its first compulsory school attendance law for children ages 8-12. But with legalized segregation, funding for the education of African American students was sorely limited, with only four black public high schools in the entire state. It would take decades before one existed in Alexandria.

Comments

Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.

Sign in to comment