Cleveland has had a public school “system” since 1836, but that’s just the beginning of the story.

The history of education in Cleveland is long, complicated, and inseparable from the broader forces that shaped the city itself, including the systems and policies that upheld racial segregation.

The Relay Cleveland Research Timeline traces key moments that deepened segregation, as well as the ongoing efforts to dismantle those barriers. Some of these events may be difficult to read or hard to reconcile, but they are all part of our collective history. They exist alongside Cleveland’s rich legacy of resilience, creativity, and community – qualities that have also defined the city’s schools and neighborhoods.

This timeline is not meant to be a definitive or complete record of Cleveland’s educational past. Instead, it’s a contribution to the centuries of research, activism, and lived experience that continue to inform this conversation. We invite you to hold these documented truths alongside the voices of Black Clevelanders and other communities who have lived, and continue to live, the realities of this history. By doing so, we can help shape a more just and inclusive future for Cleveland’s most valuable asset: its children.

You’ll notice that not every mayor or school superintendent is included in this timeline. The profiles focus primarily on early education leaders from the mid-1800s and early 1900s, as well as those who served in the decades leading up to the pivotal 1976 desegregation case and those who led the district afterward. Mayors are included specifically for their education agendas, not for their broader records in office.

Also of note: the name of Cleveland’s school district changes throughout this timeline, reflecting the city’s evolving educational landscape. By the mid-20th century, it was commonly known as Cleveland Public Schools or the Cleveland Municipal School District, and in the mid-2000s, it shifted to the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.