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Articles
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| A walk from the past to the future |
VOICE writes, "By Carol Buckley
June 6, 2008, was not just another very warm day in late spring for residents of Southwest D.C. On that day, Council members Tommy Wells and Kwame Brown co-sponsored a proclamation declaring the date Anthony Bowen Elementary School Appreciation Day to commemorate the 77-year-old school's closure as part of the D.C. school consolidation plan.
The first and last Anthony Bowen Elementary School Appreciation Day featured a morning of speeches and activities. Students, parents and staff wore sky-blue T-shirts with the school logo as they marched from Bowen to Margaret Amidon Elementary School a few blocks away. Students currently enrolled at Bowen will transfer to Amidon or Jefferson Middle School in the fall. The Coolidge High School marching band led the walkers to Amidon and back, ending the trek in Bowen’s gymnasium.
The last official day of school at Bowen is today.
“We wanted to do something to honor the people who have put so much effort into this school over the years,” said Brown. “It’s also a good opportunity to remember Anthony Bowen the man.” "
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Bowen was born a slave and, after purchasing his freedom in 1830 for $425, became the first African-American clerk at the U.S. Patent Office and founded the first YMCA for African-Americans.
The school’s gym will still host school-age children — the Metropolitan Police Boys & Girls Club currently operating out of Bowen will continue to have a home there. Most of the building, however, will be turned into the 1st District Police headquarters to allow the construction of a $218 million consolidated forensics lab at the current 1st District station at 4th and School streets SW.
Ward 6 D.C. Council member Wells was traveling and could not attend the event his office helped plan. His chief of staff, Charles Allen, described the impetus behind Wells’ plan for the council proclamation and the day of festivities.
“This is a very significant spot for so many children,” said Allen. “They need time to look back before they move on. ... It’s a bittersweet day.”
Teacher Kara Baer spoke about the friendly community at Bowen and asked the assembly to cheer principal Almeta Hawkins for her service. Hawkins is moving to Amidon with her students and will serve as principal there, but was still clearly in charge of the Bowen community on Friday morning, shushing children and limiting speakers’ time. Parent Irene Washington forcibly held onto the microphone in order to present Hawkins with a plaque honoring her years at Bowen.
The overall mood on Friday was festive as Bowen students spent the last morning in their alma mater. Sixth-grader Janael Hyatt spoke of Bowen as a “home away from home.”
Washington Nationals outfielder Rob Mackowiak, who answered students’ questions, signed autographs and posed with students for pictures.
The fate of Bowen teachers, however, is not necessarily so festive. Not all of them will move to Amidon with the students, said Southwest advisory neighborhood commissioner David Sobelsohn.
“It’s a situation I’m keeping my eyes on, to see whether they are placed. We also want to make sure the student-teacher ratio at Amidon is a good one,” he said.
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Posted on Jun 16, 2008 19:56pm.
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