First Black School Board Member, 1955

John H. Perry was an educator, civic leader, and civil rights advocate who emerged as a prominent figure in Englewood, New Jersey, during the mid-20th century. In 1945, he made history by becoming the first Black president of the Board of Directors of the Englewood Urban League, marking the first time in the organization’s 26-year history that a Black leader held that position. In 1955 he became the first black person to serve on the Englewood Board of Education. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Perry moved to New York City at the age of ten, where he received his early education. He later attended Hasbrouck Heights High School in New Jersey, gaining recognition for both scholarship and athletics. During World War I, he was one of only three Black students enrolled in the Student Army Training Corps at New York University. While working for seven years at the New York City Post Office, he pursued higher education, earning a Bachelor of Pedagogy from New York Teacher Training College and a master’s degree from New York University. Perry devoted approximately fifteen years to teaching in New York City public schools while remaining deeply engaged in community organizing and race-relations work. As vice president of the Englewood Urban League and chair of its Education Committee, he helped lead efforts that resulted in the appointment of two Black teachers in Englewood’s public schools—an important step toward educational equity. Beyond the Urban League, Perry served on the Board of Directors of the Social Service Federation of Englewood and was affiliated with numerous civic, religious, and fraternal organizations, including Bethany Presbyterian Church in Englewood, the Harlem YMCA, the Prince Hall Masons, and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. His leadership reflected a lifelong commitment to education, community uplift, and the advancement of racial justice in northern New Jersey and the greater New York region.  He was criticized by members of the Englewood Movement seeking to integrate Englewood's schools for moving too slowly on the issue. At one point, leaders of the Englewood Movement demanded his resignation from the Board. 

Bergen Evening News

Bergen Record, February 2, 1955

Rightsholder Being Researched