Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park Act
Sponsored By: Representative Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7]
Introduced
Summary
Would create a Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park and establish a National Rosenwald Schools Network to preserve Rosenwald Schools and share the story of Julius Rosenwald's partnership with Booker T. Washington and about 5,000 African American communities.
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- Communities and visitors: Would preserve a small number of representative Rosenwald School sites, including the San Domingo School in Sharptown, Maryland, the Saint George Rosenwald School in Saint George, South Carolina, and the Woodville Rosenwald School in Gloucester County, Virginia. It would place a park headquarters and visitor center in or near the former Sears Merchandising Complex in North Lawndale, Chicago and map a 40-acre boundary.
- State and local partners and property owners: Would allow the Secretary of the Interior to enter cooperative agreements with states, cities, and private groups and to fund marking, interpretation, restoration, and technical assistance for non-Federal properties. Those agreements must guarantee reasonable public access and include reimbursement rules if a funded property is later converted to other uses.
- Educators and historians: Would create a National Rosenwald Schools Network to link National Park Service units and other federal, state, and private sites, develop educational materials, adopt a uniform symbol, conduct research, evaluate additional sites for possible park inclusion, and award grants to network members. It would also require interpretation of the Rosenwald and Washington partnership at Lincoln Home National Historic Site and at Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
New Rosenwald Schools National Park
This bill would create the Julius Rosenwald and Rosenwald Schools National Historical Park. The park would include the 40-acre Sears merchandising complex in Chicago and three named Rosenwald School sites in Maryland, South Carolina, and Virginia. The park would not be established until the Secretary determines enough land or land rights are acquired and publishes that decision in the Federal Register. The Secretary would prepare a boundary map for public inspection and could acquire easements, leases, or nearby land to run the park. The San Domingo School could only be acquired by donation, purchase with donated funds, or exchange. The Secretary would finish a general management plan within three fiscal years after funds first become available. The bill would also require adding interpretation about Julius Rosenwald, his partnership with Booker T. Washington, and the roughly 5,000 Southern communities at Lincoln Home and Tuskegee Institute National Historic Sites.
Rosenwald Schools National Network
This bill would create a Rosenwald Schools National Network inside the National Park Service. The Secretary would solicit proposals from interested sites soon after enactment and would run the Network. The Network could enter cooperative agreements and give grants to support signs, exhibits, education, and technology-based interpretation at non-Federal Rosenwald properties. Any agreement would have to provide reasonable public access. Federal payments would be subject to reimbursement rules if a funded project is later converted to other uses. The Secretary could also adopt a uniform Network symbol, produce educational materials, do research, and recommend other sites for possible park inclusion.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7]
IL • D
Cosponsors
Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9]
TN • D
Sponsored 5/19/2026
Rep. Clyburn, James E. [D-SC-6]
SC • D
Sponsored 5/19/2026
Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]
DC • D
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Elfreth, Sarah [D-MD-3]
MD • D
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]
CO • D
Sponsored 7/9/2026
Rep. Wittman, Robert J. [R-VA-1]
VA • R
Sponsored 7/20/2026
Rep. Brownley, Julia [D-CA-26]
CA • D
Sponsored 7/20/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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