By Dr. Tommy Stringer
When Crystal Butcher graduated with honors from Corsicana High School in 2007, Navarro College was her first choice for continuing her education. She was not aware that her grandmother, Thelma Butcher Johnson, had played an important role in the history of Navarro 46 years earlier.
Although Navarro had been established in 1946 as a public, tax-supported institution, the student body was made up entirely of White students. The United States Supreme Court had ruled in 1954 in the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, that racial segregation had no place in public education. Schools were ordered to desegregate “with all deliberate speed.” Like other educational institutions and school districts, Navarro did not develop a specific plan to comply with the Court’s directive. The late Dr. Ben Jones, who was Navarro’s president at the time, recalled the College policy was not to actively recruit Black students, but to enroll them if they came to register.
In the fall of 1961, five African-American students applied for admission to Navarro. The all-female group included Margaret English, Lois Wright, Shirley Carroll, Corene Haywood and Thelma Butcher. In keeping with the policy the College had adopted, they enrolled without incident and began their college experience.
“I didn’t consider myself a pioneer or trailblazer,” Mrs. Johnson recalled. “I just wanted to go to college and Navarro was here in my hometown. I couldn’t afford to go away to a university, so Navarro was my only option.” While there was no open opposition from their classmates, she indicated that she and the other Black students did not necessarily feel welcomed. “We seemed to be more tolerated than accepted,” she recalled.
Upon learning that her grandmother had helped “open the door” for Black students at Navarro, Crystal Butcher has developed a sense of pride and appreciation for her courage. In many communities and schools, violence marked the desegregation process, and Black students who “broke the color barrier” found themselves in danger. Although such was not the case at Navarro, Mrs. Johnson and her African-American classmates had no way of knowing how white students and faculty would react. Fortunately there were no negative repercussions, and the year was relatively uneventful despite its historic significance.
Within five years, enrollment of Blacks significantly increased at Navarro and Blacks became more active in campus life as members of clubs and athletic teams. By the end of the decade they were holding offices in various organizations and being chosen by their classmates for honors and awards.
Crystal Butcher is enjoying her experiences at Navarro. She is enrolled in the Honors Program and is involved in the Student Government Association, the LEO Club, and Phi Theta Kappa. She maintains a 3.7 GPA and is majoring in criminal justice. She is very proud of the contributions her grandmother made in providing opportunities for her and other African-American students.
—————
Dr. Tommy Stringer is executive director of the Navarro College Foundation.
