Date of Award
5-2024
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
History
Department
History
Major Professor
Max Krochmal
Second Advisor
Andrea Mosterman
Third Advisor
Al Kennedy
Abstract
The study of school systems in Thibodaux, the seat of Lafourche Parish, adds to research on school desegregation in Southern rural communities. This thesis highlights the untold story of the Black community's resistance to segregation in Thibodaux and efforts by white officials to maintain a segregated school system. Black resistance included a petition filed in 1955 and the Edward Hill v. Lafourche Parish School Board (1967) case. Partial integration began in 1966, but the parish did not establish a unitary system until the 1968-1969 school year. This research focuses on the Lafourche Parish public school system from first through twelfth grades. This thesis investigates the process of desegregating schools in Thibodaux from 1954 to 1970 by analyzing the Lafourche Parish School Board records, court case records, newspapers, and oral history interviews.
Recommended Citation
Thibodaux, Shelby L., "The Desegregation of Schools in Thibodaux, Louisiana: 1954-1970" (2024). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 3159.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/3159
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.