Area Alumni of Howard University
Prior to the second World War, few African Americans graduated from Youngstown schools. Many opted instead to take work in the local industries or in domestic work. By the outset of the war, more young African Americans were completing their high school educations, and slowly, African American educators were given opportunities in the Youngstown School system, beginning with Mary Ella Lovett Belton in 1939, followed by Dorothy Hubbard Wigfall, Elizabeth Caldwell, and Ann B Martin. The numbers of non-white educators would grow to about 100 by 1960, and in 1962, Dr. James Ervin became the first African American school administrator. Some of the local African Americans who have served their communities as educators are commemorated in the Delta Heritage Project.
Dr. Herbert Louis Armstrong
Dr. Herbert Louis Armstrong was born in 1919, the third of seven children to Fletcher F Armstrong, proprietor of the city’s first African American-owned haberdashery, and Maggie E Harth Armstrong, proprietor of Youngstown’s first African American-owned beauty school, as well as a missionary and minister later in life. Her father was Attorney Daniel W Harth, an early civil rights activist and associate of such figures as Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington. Attorney Harth had instilled in his children a notion of the value of education, which Herbert took to heart. After coming home from serving overseas in World War II, Herbert enrolled in classes at Youngstown College, focusing on business and education. Although faced with obstacles of discrimination, Dr. Armstrong continued in his studies when he was denied a position as a high school business teacher, and eventually his determination paid off and he was hired as an elementary school teacher in 1953. After seven years teaching, mentoring new teachers, and playing a part in the trailblazing promotions of Ann Martin and Mary Lovett Belton to supervisory roles in the Youngstown school system, Dr. Armstrong became Youngstown’s first African American elementary school principal in 1965. Armstrong’s wife, Betty w. Armstrong, also made history in 1953 as the first African American librarian in the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, becoming Head Librarian of South Branch Library in 1975.
Information on Dr. Herbert Louis Armstrong in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Dr. Herbert Louis Armstrong, from Afro-American Bicentennial Observance: A Rediscovery of Part of the Past
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Dr. Herbert Louis Armstrong
Dr. Martha Irene Bruce
Dr. Martha Irene Bruce earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Youngstown College in 1951. In her career she has been an elementary school teacher in Youngstown schools, reading specialist, corrections education specialist, occupational therapist, school administrator, college lecturer and consultant. Traveling the world to experience first-hand many different cultures has been one of Dr. Bruce’s pursuits; she has traveled to twenty-six countries and presented papers in nine. From 1976 to 1982, Dr. Bruce was principal lecturer with the Alvan Ikoku College of Education in Nigeria, where she was nominated for a UNESCO Literacy Prize for the literacy programs she developed. Building bridges between cultures has been a significant aspect of Dr. Bruce’s career, whether through her presentations on her experiences traveling the globe or her children’s books on the live of children in Africa.
Information on Dr. Martha Irene Bruce in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Photograph of Dr. Martha Irene Bruce
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Dr. Martha Irene Bruce
- Photograph of stories by Dr. Martha Irene Bruce
Mary Ella Lovett Belton
Mary Ella Lovett Belton was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and came to Youngstown at a very young age. She received her teacher’s certificate from Ohio University and her degree from Morgan State College. She would also earn a Master’s Degree from Ohio State do additional graduate work at the Teacher’s College in Columbia University, Miami University, and Westminster College. Mrs. Belton made local history several times in her life. In 1940 she became the first African American woman to be hired as a teacher in the Youngstown school district, teaching at the Butler School for almost twenty years. She then became the first African American elementary school supervisor and in 1968 became the first woman principal in the city.
Information on Mary Ella Lovett Belton in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Vindicator article: “Community pays tribute to McKinley principal”
- Vindicator article: “Mrs. Belton retires as principal”
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Mary Ella Lovett Belton
- Undated photograph of Mary Ella Lovett Belton
- Undated photograph of Mary Ella Lovett Belton
Mizell Ewing
Mizell E Ewing was born in Youngstown in 1925. He enlisted in the Navy after graduating from South High to fight in World War II. While a serviceman, Ewing also sang in the Blue Jacket Choir. After the war, Ewing studied music for two years at the Dana School of Music and the the Boston Conservatory of Music for three years, earning his Bachelors of Music degree in 1951. He then went to Europe to study at the Paris National Conservatory and the Sorbonne. While in Europe, Ewing gave concerts as an operatic tenor in Holland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and France. Ewing returned to Youngstown in the mid-1950’s, becoming certified to teach music in 1956 and completing his MA in 1960 at Columbia. Ewing would then teach music in pubilc schools in Newark, New Jersey and Youngstown. He also taught music at his own school for 30 years, the Mizell Ewing School of Music and Arts.
Information on Mizell Ewing in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
Clifford Johnson
Clifford Johnson was born in Youngstown in 1935. He received a degree in elementary education from Youngstown College and then entered the military. In 1960 he started his teaching career as a special education teacher at Market High School. Johnson was the first African American head coach and would become the first African American principal in Warren city schools, heading both elementary and high schools.
Information on Clifford Johnson in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Clifford Johnson
- Photograph of Clifford Johnson
- Photograph of Clifford Johnson and family
Ann Martin
Ann B Martin was born in Youngstown and would be a pioneer in education, following shortly after Mary Ella Lovett Belton in becoming one of the first African American educators and administrators in the Youngstown school district.
Information on Ann B Martin in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
Everett McCollum
Everett McCollum was born in North Carolina. He came to Youngstown at a young age as a five-year-old piano prodigy. McCollum’s musical talent would make him a well-known name in Youngstown even in his youth, and he would study music in the Dana School of Music. After receiving his degree, Everett McCollum became a music teacher in Youngstown schools for 13 years and would also serve as a junior high school administrator for 19 years.
Information on Everett McCollum in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Photograph of Everett McCollum
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Everett McCollum
- “McCollum Puts Education First.” The Jambar, November 9th 1951, page 1 (From the Jambar Newspaper Archive)
Robert L Pegues
Robert L Pegues became Youngstown’s first African American superintendent of schools in 1972, a position he held through 1978. Pegues continued to work in local education after his retrement as Superintendent, joining the staff of Youngstown State University as a liason between the university and the public school system.
Information on Robert L Pegues in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Robert L Pegues, from Afro-American Bicentennial Observance: A Rediscovery of Part of the Past
- “Pegues Appointed to YSU Staff.” The Jambar, August 3rd 1978, page 1 (From the Jambar Newspaper Archive)
Larke "Buddy" D Suber
Larke “Buddy” D Suber was born in South Carolina in 1915 and came to Struthers, Ohio in 1924. He made a name for himself as an athlete in school and in 1934 became the first African American student at Baldwin Wallace College. Suber was commemorated in Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! for a 76 yard punt against Western Reserve University. After graduating with honors in 1938, Suber and his family went to Atlanta, as he was unable to find employment locally due to discrimination. There, Suber was a professor of English and German and football coach, but after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Suber enlisted in the military. After the war, Suber became a minister and returned to Struthers, serving as pastor at St. Paul’s AME Church.
Information on Larke Suber in the Delta Heritage Project includes:
- Delta Heritage Project biography of Larke “Buddy” D. Suber, Sr.
- Photograph of Larke “Buddy” D. Suber, Sr.
Many of the persons profiled in the Delta Heritage Project have been involved in education in a number of Ways. Dr. Ron Daniels, Ezell Armour and Judge Nathaniel Jones have taught university courses. Hugh Frost was the first African American appointed to the Youngstown Board of Education in 1962. McCullough Williams, Jr and Reverend Lonnie Simon were the first African Americans elected to the Youngstown Board of Education in 1971, and Mr. Williams would be the first African American president of the Board. Edna Pincham was the first African American woman elected to the Board, and has also established a non-profit agency to help students pass state proficiency exams called the Pincham Initiative Resource Center. Birdie Welcher established the McGuffey Centre which has provided so many Youngstown children with educational services since its foundation in 1940.
An additional source of information is Virginia Tech’s fascinating Oral History of the Public School Principalship which features oral histories of several Youngstown school administrators, some of whom are commemorated in the Delta Heritage Project. These interviews, conducted in the early to mid 1990’s, serve to further elucidate the life stories and professional ideas of these educators, as well as providing a picture of the educational landscape of Youngstown during an era of great change. Local subjects of interview include:
