The school opened its doors
in 1909 with Dr. Nannie Helen Burroughs as Founder and First President under the motto, “We specialize in the wholly
impossible.” Its creed, stressed by Miss Burroughs, emphasized
the value of the “three B’s – the Bible, the Bath and Broom: clean life, clean body and clean house.”
Of particular pride at the school was its Black history program in which every student was required
to take a course.
The school campus spans some eight or more acres on a beautiful rolling hill in Northeast Washington, D.C. “I
had God’s hill which He had given me for the Negro women of America. I felt like I think
Abraham must have felt when God told him, ‘In thee shall all the people of the earth be blessed…’(The
Dream and the Dreamer, Dr. Earl L. Harrison, 1972, NHBS, Inc.) She dubbed the site “the Holy Hill”
just before her passing in 1961.
In 1964,
as a tribute to the memory of Dr. Burroughs, the Board of Trustees voted to rename the National Trade and Professional
School the Nannie Helen Burroughs School, Inc.
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“The mission of the Nannie Helen Burroughs School, Inc. is
to provide students a strong academic program in a nurturing, safe, Christian environment. The school promotes
cultural awareness, creative expression, and an appreciation of the arts, which will enable students to become productive
citizens in the global society.” |
Nannie Helen Burroughs was born the eldest daughter to John
and Jennie Burroughs on May 2, 1879 in Orange, Virginia. Her widowed mother took her to Washington, D.C.
at an early age in pursuit of a better education. She studied business and domestic science in high school
and graduated with honors in 1896.
Miss Burroughs was a prolific writer, educator,
orator, businesswoman and Christian leader. She contributed much toward bringing about the recognition
of the power and influence of the Black woman in all of the important issues in American life. In her travels
in this country and abroad, her forceful utterances and charming personality left a lasting impression upon all with whom
she came in contact.
In
1907, with the support of the National Baptist Convention, Miss Burroughs began coordinating the building plans for
the National trade and Professional School for Women and Girls located in Washington, D.C.
In
1976, Mayor Walter E. Washington and Councilwoman Willie Hardy (Ward 7) proclaimed May 10th as Nannie Helen Burroughs
Day. Councilwoman Hardy’s legislation to change Deane Avenue and Grant Street (from
Minnesota Avenue to Eastern Avenue) to Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, Northeast was presented. This
legislation was unanimously approved by the City Council on May 3, 1976; the dedication
ceremonies were held on May 10, 1976.
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