The Prairie View Interscholastic League (PVIL) was the organization that governed academic and athletic competitions between African-American high schools in Texas for much of the 20th century. The organization's structure and operations were similar to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) and it disbanded shortly after the UIL admitted black high schools in the 1960s. A number of former PVIL football players were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame after successful professional careers.
11-740: The Texas Interscholastic League of Colored Schools (TILCS) was formed in 1920 by the Colored Teachers State Association of Texas and the Negro School Division of the State Department of Education. In 1923, TILCS came under the control of Prairie View A & M College and its name became the Prairie View Interscholastic League. PVIL competitions included athletic events, extemporaneous speaking , declamation and music. By 1927, 300 schools belonged to
22-436: A part of the football league. Originally there were 21 schools, but the membership expanded to the point where schools needed to be divided into conferences based on their sizes. The league was divided into 1A and 2A conferences by 1948. Conferences 3A and 4A were established by 1952 and in 1960, respectively. In 1964, discussions began on the possibility of UIL admission for black Texas high schools. The PVIL began to merge with
33-785: A quality public school for every child." TSTA originated in Mexia in June 1880, when the North Texas Teachers Association and Austin Teachers Association combined. Among its many achievements: minimum foundation laws that set statewide teacher salaries; creation of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas; certification laws; bills to establish maintenance and operation funds for schools; and thousands of other important bills. By an all-member vote in 1974, TSTA unified with
44-433: Is displayed at a community center run by The University of Texas . The Houston Chronicle named a team of all-time PVIL football players in a 1992 list. Inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame Colored Teachers State Association of Texas The Colored Teachers State Association of Texas (CTSAT) was created in 1884 to unite black educators across the state of Texas . The main goals were to create equality in
55-743: The Texas State Teachers Association . Texas State Teachers Association Texas State Teachers Association, or TSTA, is the oldest education organization in Texas , affiliated with the National Education Association (NEA). TSTA is led by a full-time state president and vice president, a board of directors, and a democratically elected House of Delegates. TSTA's mission is to "unite, organize and empower public education advocates to shape public education in Texas, thus providing
66-493: The PVIL. In 1939 Yates High School (Houston) coach Andrew "Pat" Patterson asked the principal of Yates, William S. Holland, to meet with E. B. Evans, the president of Prairie View A&M, to discuss regulating American football and establishing a football league. Rick Sherrod, author of Texas High School Football Dynasties , described Patterson as the "architect" of the PVIL football league. Initially only schools in urban areas were
77-873: The Prairie View curriculum. In 1921, the Colored Teachers State Association of Texas began publishing the Texas Standard, the organization's official publication. In 1943, Colored Teachers State Association of Texas began filing suits for equal pay for colored teachers. The first case was won in Dallas with Houston following suit two months later. Equal pay throughout the entire state was not realized until 1961 when state regulations mandated minimum starting wages and experiential increases. Colored Teachers State Association of Texas helped to provide legal support to Heman Sweatt in his case to gain entrance into
88-467: The UIL, and schools in urban areas played their last PVIL football seasons in 1966. All sports competition transitioned to the UIL by the spring of 1970 and the organization disbanded that year. The Prairie View Interscholastic League Coaches Association (PVILCA), an organization for former PVIL coaches and athletes, was later formed to preserve the league's history and to honor its participants. League memorabilia
99-558: The [University of Texas] law school in the influential Sweatt v. Painter case. The decision in favor of Sweatt in 1950 began breaking down the walls of segregation in higher education in Texas and helped lay the foundation for later cases against "Jim Crow" laws helping to lead to the overturning of Plessy v. Ferguson in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. In August 1966, the Colored Teachers State Association of Texas decided to voluntarily dissolve on December 30 of that year, merging into
110-563: The public school system under Jim Crow laws and to establish a black institution of higher education as outlined in the Texas Constitution of 1876 . The organization operated for eighty-two years until its voluntary dissolution in December 1966. The association was founded in 1884 at Prairie View Normal and Industrial College by L. C. Anderson, Prairie View's principal, David Abner, an educator, and ten others. At that time, Prairie View
121-535: Was the only school of higher education for black students in the state of Texas, which operated under the Hampton-Tuskegee model. It was the only option for black students seeking a liberal arts education with no options in the state of Texas. The Colored Teachers State Association of Texas pushed for better educational opportunities arguing against the belief that black minds were only suited for industrial training. In 1901, college-level courses were finally added to
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