The University of Chicago Library > The Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center > Finding Aids > Guide to the Annette Medow Barrash Collection 1945-1992
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| Title: | Barrash, Annette Medow. Collection |
|---|---|
| Dates: | 1945-1992 |
| Size: | 1 linear feet (1 boxes) |
| Repository: |
Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center |
| Abstract: | Annette Medow Barrash (b. December 21, 1923, d. July 26, 2019) was a teacher and community activist with a focus on public education and school desegregation in Chicago. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and mathematics and became involved with the Citizens Schools Committee. As Vice President of the Committee, Medow Barrash participated in efforts to strengthen public schools in Chicago in coordination with the City’s Board of Education and contributed to numerous initiatives and programs. The collection documents Annette Medow Barrash’s contributions to education in Chicago, the history and organization of the Citizens Schools Committee, and the history of public education in Chicago, including the process of desegregation and efforts for decentralization. |
The collection is open for research.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Barrash, Annette Medow. Collection, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.
Annette Medow Barrash (b. December 21, 1923, d. July 26, 2019) was a teacher and community activist with a focus on education and school desegregation in Chicago. Daughter of William and Emma Medow, she was born in the west side of Chicago and attended Austin High School. In 1945 she graduated from the University of Chicago with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology and mathematics and started to work as a counselor at the Orthogenic School (which was renamed in 1949 as “The Sonia Shankman Orthogenic School”). The same year she married Meyer Barrash. Later, Annette Medow Barrash began her community activism and got involved, among other projects, with the Citizens Schools Committee.
The Citizens Schools Committee was founded in 1933, under the name “The Citizens Save Our Schools Committee,” for the purpose of increasing the quality of education in Chicago through promoting citizens’ understanding of and involvement in public school issues and providing solutions for the problems. Among the Committee’s priorities were the elimination of racial discrimination in the schools and the manipulations of partisan political influences. The Committee’s accomplishments, among others, included the establishment of the Mayor’s Advisory Commission on School Board Nominations, the initiation of the use of school buildings for after-school activities, the passage of three $50 billion bond issues for the construction of new school buildings, the organization or sponsorship of numerous conferences on educational matters, the administration of an annual award to teachers for outstanding professional and community leadership, co-sponsorship of a seminar on reading, and an active role in the process of desegregation. In 1971, the Committee was designated one of five permanent members of the Mayor’s Advisory Commission on School Board Nominations.
Annette Medow Barrash served the Committee in various capacities, finally as Vice President, a position she held as of 1974. After her retirement, she moved to Hanover, IL and later to Dubuque, IA. She died on July 26, 2019 at the age of 95.
The collection is organized into three series. Series I: Citizens Schools Committee (CSC); Series II: Subject Files; Series III: Photographs
Series I, Citizens Schools Committee, contains outgoing and incoming correspondence of Barrash as member and Vice President of CSC; CSC’s records, reports, statements, and press releases; meeting records and correspondence regarding CSC’s project on reading; meeting records and programs of CSC’s annual civic assemblies; documents on the Mayor’s Advisory Committee in School Board Nominations and CSC’s nominating committee minutes; CSC’s executive committee minutes; material published about or by CSC; and documents about District 22 and decentralization. The contents of each folder are arranged chronologically.
Series II, Subject Files, consists of journal issues and article copies on education and public schools, published by various educational associations and institutions other than CSC.
Series III, Photographs, consists of two photographs, the first one of Annette Medow Barrash as a counselor at the Orthogenic School with a small group of students, and the other of Bruno Bettelheim, the director of the Orthogenic School with a small group of students.
Series I: Citizens Schools Committee |
| Box 1 Folder 1 | Annette Medow Barrash’s correspondence, 1970-1974 |
| Box 1 Folder 2 | CSC records and correspondence, 1950-1974 |
| Box 1 Folder 3 | CSC history-activity reports and press releases, 1964-1972 |
| Box 1 Folder 4 | CSC project and seminars on reading, 1970-1971 |
| Box 1 Folder 5 | CSC Annual Civic Assembly, 1971-1972 |
| Box 1 Folder 6 | Mayor’s Advisory Committee on School Board Nominations, 1971-1974 |
| Box 1 Folder 7 | CSC Nominating Committee minutes, 1973-1974 |
| Box 1 Folder 8 | CSC Executive Committee minutes, 1973 |
| Box 1 Folder 9 | CSC in the media: Newspaper clippings, 1970-1971 |
| Box 1 Folder 10 | CSC publication “Better Schools for all Chicago: School Accountability Study,” 1982 |
| Box 1 Folder 11 | District 22 and Decentralization, 1969-1972 |
| Box 1 Folder 12 | Grant application and annual budget of CSC, 1974 |
Series II: Subject Files |
| Box 1 Folder 13 | Chicago-specific journals and pamphlets on integrating schools and classrooms, 1964-1976 |
| Box 1 Folder 14 | “Integrated Education” Journal, issues 27 (1967), 35 (1968), 37(1969), 39(1969) |
| Box 1 Folder 15 | “Law and Society Review” Journal, November 1967 |
| Box 1 Folder 16 | Copies of journal articles, 1969-1992 |
| Box 1 Folder 17 | “Desegregation and Chicago Public Schools: Issues and Options,” conference proceedings, published by American Issues Forum Chicago, 1976 |
Series III: Photographs |
| Box 1 Folder 18 | Two photographs at the Orthogenic School, 1945 |