Dogan School is one of the many forgotten schools in the state of Texas. Not much is known about this school or its history. This news article will attempt to find out the history behind this school.
Dogan School was named in honor of Wiley College president, M.W. Dogan. The original building was built to replace the New Town School. M.W. Dogan School was built as a two-story brick building on the West End of Marshall. The original school building had 10 classrooms. Dogan School was built in 1947 and opened in 1949.
M.W. Dogan School was opened by Marshall ISD for colored students. Dogan School was also known as M. W. Dogan Elementary School and M.W. Dogan School during its years of operation. The school was racially segregated. The school had a 100% black population.
Mr. W. J. White was the first principal of Dogan School. However he died before his first term ended. Price T. Young became the second principal of M. W. Dogan School serving from 1949 until 1964. His influence was huge on this school making such an impression.
During the 1972-1973 school year, the Dogan School had 248 black students and 39 white students. This was 3 years after Marshal ISD desegregated its schools.
(Ref: Brownwood Bulletin, Page 2, Friday, December 14, 1973)
Dogan School closed in 1981 during reorganization of Marshall ISD. The school would sit abandoned and vacant for 2 short years before being reused on a lease as a community center with the NAACP.
According to Marshall News Messenger, Marshall ISD School Board signed a lease agreement with the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for the use of M.W. Dogan School as a community center. The lease is for an indefinite term with a clause allowing for cancellation by either party with 30 days notice. A token $10 rental fee was asked. In exchange, the NAACP was expected to keep up the building and grounds.
The school board took no action in demolishing the school as they decided reuse and urban renewal was more important. Both NAACP and Marshall ISD own and maintain the school building. The building was sold to NAACP in the late 1980s.
(Ref: Marshall News Messenger, Page 18, Wednesday, August 10, 1983)
Other than being used as a community center, it has been sitting abandoned and vacant since then. Nothing else has happened.
Dogan School is located at the address of 2005 Dogan Street, Marshall, Texas, US 75670.
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