--- title: SR 301. Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee; create collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr301 cite_as: SR 301, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr301 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr301.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr301/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70956 date: 2025-04-02 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr300.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr302.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 429 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr301.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 301 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-04-02 last_action: Senate Passed/Adopted sponsors: - Gail Davenport - Tonya Anderson - Donzella James - Emanuel Jones - Nikki Merritt - Freddie Sims - Ed Harbison - Derek Mallow - Sheikh Rahman - Nabilah Islam Parkes - Michael Rhett - David Lucas - Matt Brass - Elena Parent - Kenya Wicks - Sally Harrell text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR301/2025 upstream_id: 1987909 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Rosenwald schools - African American history - Georgia legislature study committees - education history --- # SR 301. Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee; create ## Text 25 LC 55 0564 Senate Resolution 301 By: Senators Davenport of the 17th, Anderson of the 43rd, James of the 28th, Jones of the 10th, Merritt of the 9th and others ADOPTED SENATE A RESOLUTION Creating the Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee; and for other purposes.1 WHEREAS, in the early 1900s, Julius Rosenwald, one of the early presidents and part owner2 of Sears, Roebuck and Co., partnered with Booker T. Washington, a Black educator and3 leader, to fund construction of schools in poor, rural African American school districts across4 the South; and5 WHEREAS, Rosenwald schools were cooperatively built with donations of land and labor6 from the local communities and matching financial contributions from the Rosenwald7 Foundation; and8 WHEREAS, the foundation helped fund the construction of almost 5,000 schools for Black9 children around the South, which helped lift generations of Afr ican Americans out of10 poverty; and11 WHEREAS, the program provided funding for more than 240 Rosenwald schools in 103 of12 Georgia's 159 counties, and at least 35,000 children attended those schools; and13 S. R. 301 - 1 - 25 LC 55 0564 WHEREAS, school integration brought an end to operation of the Rosenwald schools,14 though many continued to serve their communities long after; and15 WHEREAS, Rosenwald and Washington's program dramatically transf ormed the country16 by profoundly reshaping the African American experience, yet it s scope and impact are17 largely unknown and remain hidden history; and18 WHEREAS, the history of Rosenwald schools in Georgia and their impact on the education19 and economic prosperity of African Americans in the state is deserving of study.20 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE:21 (1) Creation of Senate study committee. There is created the Senate Rosenwald22 Schools Study Committee.23 (2) Members and officers. The committee shall be composed of five members of the24 Senate to be appointed by the President of the Senate. The Pre sident shall designate a25 member of the committee as chairperson of the committee.26 (3) Powers and duties. The committee shall undertake a study of the conditions, needs,27 issues, and problems mentioned above or related thereto and recommend any action or28 legislation which the committee deems necessary or appropriate.29 (4) Meetings. The chairperson shall call all meetings of the committee. The committee30 may conduct such meetings at such places and at such times as it may deem necessary or31 convenient to enable it to exercise fully and effectively its powers, perform its duties, and32 accomplish the objectives and purposes of this resolution.33 (5) Allowances and funding.34 The legislative members of the committee shall receive the allo wances provided for in35 Code Section 28-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated. The allowances36 authorized by this resolution shall not be received by any member of the committee for37 S. R. 301 - 2 - 25 LC 55 0564 more than five days unless additional days are authorized. Funds necessary to carry out38 the provisions of this resolution shall come from funds appropriated to the Senate.39 (6) Report.40 (A) In the event the committee adopts any specific findings or recommendations that41 include suggestions for proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file a report of the42 same prior to the date of abolishment specified in this resolut ion, subject to43 subparagraph (C) of this paragraph.44 (B) In the event the committee adopts a report that does not i nclude suggestions for45 proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file the report subject to subparagraph (C)46 of this paragraph.47 (C) No report shall be filed unless the same has been approved prior to the date of48 abolishment specified in this resolution by majority vote of a quorum of the committee.49 A report so approved shall be signed by the chairperson of the committee and filed with50 the Secretary of the Senate.51 (D) In the absence of an approved report, the chairperson may file with the Secretary52 of the Senate a copy of the minutes of the meetings of the committee in lieu thereof.53 (7) Abolishment. The committee shall stand abolished on December 1, 2025.54 S. R. 301 - 3 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Senate resolution creates a five-member Senate study committee to research the history and impact of Rosenwald schools, which educated Black students in rural Georgia in the early 1900s. ### Plain-language summary Rosenwald schools were built in the early 1900s across the South, including more than 240 in 103 of Georgia's 159 counties, through a partnership between Sears executive Julius Rosenwald and educator Booker T. Washington. These schools educated at least 35,000 Black children before school integration ended their operation, but the resolution notes their history and impact remain largely unknown. This resolution creates the Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee, made up of five senators appointed by the President of the Senate, who also names the chairperson. The committee will study the history, needs, and issues connected to Rosenwald schools in Georgia and can recommend legislation. It can hold meetings as needed, and members receive standard legislative allowances (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8) for up to five days unless more are approved. The committee must file any report before it is abolished on December 1, 2025. ### What it does - Creates the Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee made up of five state senators appointed by the President of the Senate. - Directs the committee to study the history, conditions, and impact of Rosenwald schools built for Black students in Georgia. - Allows the committee to recommend legislation or other action based on its findings. - Sets legislative allowances for committee members under O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8, capped at five days of pay unless additional days are approved. - Requires any approved report to be filed with the Secretary of the Senate before the committee is abolished. - Abolishes the committee automatically on December 1, 2025. ### Who it affects The resolution directly affects the five state senators appointed to serve on the committee and the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, which receives any final report. More broadly, it concerns the historical record of Georgia communities that hosted Rosenwald schools. ### Why it matters The committee's work could surface historical information about how Rosenwald schools shaped education and economic opportunity for Black Georgians, and could lead to future legislative proposals. Its findings and any recommendations depend on the committee completing its work before the December 2025 deadline. ### Key provisions - Paragraph (1) formally creates the Senate Rosenwald Schools Study Committee. - Paragraph (2) sets committee membership at five senators appointed by the President of the Senate, who also picks the chairperson. - Paragraph (3) gives the committee authority to study Rosenwald school issues and recommend legislation. - Paragraph (5) ties member pay to O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8 and funds the committee through existing Senate appropriations. - Paragraph (6) lays out reporting rules, including that any report with legislative recommendations must be filed before abolishment. - Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2025. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-04-02) - Last action: Senate Passed/Adopted (2025-04-02) - Sponsors: Gail Davenport, Tonya Anderson, Donzella James, Emanuel Jones, Nikki Merritt, Freddie Sims, Ed Harbison, Derek Mallow, Sheikh Rahman, Nabilah Islam Parkes, Michael Rhett, David Lucas, Matt Brass, Elena Parent, Kenya Wicks, Sally Harrell - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70956 > The history, votes, and amendments (429 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr301.md?full=1