*The National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers Association (NCCPT) is celebrated on this date in 1926.
Its beginnings in 1911 were the work of Selena Sloan Butler at Yonge Street Elementary School. There, she held the first parent-teacher association for Blacks in the United States. In 1919, she formed a statewide parent-teacher association in Georgia. What began as a local venture grew into a nationally recognized organization due to Butler’s efforts. Her dedication to children and families inspired her to reach out to parents nationally.
She wrote several letters encouraging parents and teachers of color to form a union with the primary purpose of uniting home and school in a planned child welfare program. Her letters stimulated interest in the parent-teacher movement, and her own state, Georgia, became the first to organize.
By 1926, Butler aroused sufficient interest and issued the first call for a national convention. Four states responded to this call and sent delegates. That same year, the once statewide parent-teacher association became the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers Association. The NCCPT was modeled closely after its white-only counterpart, the National Congress of Parents and Teachers (today, the National Parent-Teacher Association). Butler dedicated her life to forming an organization with the same objectives as the National Congress of Parents and Teachers. The NCCPT and the Congress of Mothers worked closely to improve school conditions for all children, regardless of race and teachers.
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