Countee Cullen graduates Clinton High
The third 1922 post for our annual celebration of Black History Month.
The Epworth Herald, 10 June 1922, p. 24. Google Books.
One hundred years ago today … Countee Cullen of 234 West 130th St., was featured in the Daily News for graduating from DeWitt Clinton High at the top of a class of 300 students.
Daily News, 7 February 1922, p. 1. Newspapers.com.
He graduated with an academic average of 93, offers of scholarships to Columbia and New York Universities, and the Douglas Fairbanks Prize in poetry for his “I Have a Rendezvous with Life.”
New York Age, 11 February 1922, p. 1. Newspapers.com.
As valedictorian, 100 years ago this month, he read out his poem, “Any Senior to His Friend.”
The Epworth Herald, 10 June 1922, p. 1. Google Books.
– Jonathan Goldman, Feb. 7, 2022
TAGS: Black poetry, African American history, school, verse, literature