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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Grant Sleet
Grant Sleet grew up on Beakes Street and attended Jones School from kindergarten to fifth grade. When Jones School closed in 1965, he was bused to Pattengill Elementary School. He also describes what it was like to travel and compete as a member of the French Dukes precision drill team.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Harold Simons
Harold Simons attended Jones School in the 1950s, and he remembers his sixth grade teacher Harry Mial as an important role model. He went on to teach physical education and coach varsity basketball and golf at Huron High School from 1980 to 2007.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: James Bryant
James Bryant attended Jones School from kindergarten to fifth grade. When Jones School closed in 1965, he was bused to Pattengill Elementary, and he remembers a tumultuous period of racial conflict. He helped form the Black Student Union at Tappan Junior High and Huron High School.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Martha Monk Hill
Martha Monk Hill attended Jones School from kindergarten through sixth grade, and she grew up on North Fifth Avenue with her foster parents Arnell and Bill Ridley. She recalls how her neighbors supported one another, especially parental figures like Carroll and Annette McFadden and Waltstine Perry.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Nadia Shalaby
Nadia Shalaby attended Jones School from third grade through sixth grade, and then in 1964 her family moved to Birmingham, Alabama. As an Egyptian American student who lived in the North and the South during the era of school desegregation, she shares a unique perspective.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Gina Perry
Gina Perry shares memories of her grandfather, Waltstine Perry, who was a custodian at Jones School. He lived in Ypsilanti and commuted to Jones School every day. Many former students remember Mr. Perry as an important role model.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Mary Hinton-Branner
Mary Hinton-Branner attended Jones School in the 1950s, from kindergarten through sixth grade. She remembers going to the Dunbar Community Center and playing in the neighborhood with her eleven siblings. She recalls how the rise in public housing led to the gentrification of “The Old Neighborhood.”
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Richard Payne
Richard Payne attended Jones School until fifth or sixth grade, when he was bused to Pattengill Elementary School due to the closure of Jones. He remembers white parents and their children protesting with racist signs on the first day of classes, and being disciplined unfairly.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Robert Allen
Robert Allen attended Jones School from kindergarten through sixth grade in the 1950s. He remembers walking to school along Beakes Street and playing softball on the playground, with custodian Waltstine Perry as pitcher. He never had a Black teacher in the Ann Arbor Public Schools.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Paula Miller
Paula Miller, the youngest of the Dixon siblings, attended Jones School in first and second grade. When Jones School closed in 1965, she was bused to Pittsfield Elementary School, where she felt alienated from her fellow classmates. She went on to attend Spelman College and became a teacher.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.