Drew-Smith Elementary School
Title
Drew-Smith Elementary School
Date
1952 - 1965
Description
Drew-Smith School, a segregated facility opened in the 1952-53 School year. It was named for Charles Drew, a researcher in the field of blood transfusions and Annie Smith, the first African American teacher at the Gum Springs Colored School. It was closed in June 1965 when Fairfax County integrated the schools. The majority of Drew-Smith students were integrated into Bucknell, Gunston, Hollin Hall, Hollin Meadows, Hybla Valley, and Mount Vernon Woods elementary schools.
Drew-Smith was converted into a special education center and became a pilot site for the “Culturally Disadvantaged Program” (the forerunner of the Head Start program). The building is currently in use as the Gum Springs Community Center.
Drew-Smith was converted into a special education center and became a pilot site for the “Culturally Disadvantaged Program” (the forerunner of the Head Start program). The building is currently in use as the Gum Springs Community Center.
Source
“Desegregation: The Schools” Fairfax County Public Schools. Desegregation: The Schools | Fairfax County Public Schools (fcps.edu)
“Drew-Smith Elementary School” Gum Springs Museum Website, May 1, 2009. The Gum Springs Museum: Drew-Smith Elementary School
Dedication of Drew-Smith Elementary School, Gum Springs, Fairfax County, Virginia by Drew-Smith Elementary School, 1953. Available in FCPL Virginia Room 372.9755D 1953
Drew-Smith Elementary School Reunion: Celebrating a Proud Past, by Drew-Smith Elementary School Reunion Committee, 1997. Available in FCPL Virginia Room 372.9755 D 1997
“Snake Hill to Spring Bank: The Groveton Community” Groveton High School students under the direction of their teachers and Edith Moore Sprouse in the mid-1970s. The interviews were transcribed. All three volumes of the book are also available online at http://166.94.9.135/library/branches/vr/snakehill/
“A History of Education For Black Students in Fairfax County Prior to 1954.” by Evelyn Darnell Russell-Porte Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION, July 19, 2000, https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/29646/Final.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Location
8100 Fordson Rd, Alexandria, VA 22306
District
Mount Vernon
Photo Credit
Courtesy of FCPS
Files
Collection
Citation
“Drew-Smith Elementary School,” Fairfax County African American History Inventory, accessed October 24, 2026, https://fairfaxaahi.centerformasonslegacies.com/items/show/17.