SHORE PERSPECTIVES: Jaqueline James, First African American Student at Central High School in 1964

By Kelley Gaskill

Ruby Bridges advanced the cause of civil rights in November 1960 when she became the first African American student to integrate an elementary school in the South. Eventually every area of the country took its first steps into integration including the Eastern Shore when, in 1964, then Jaqueline Wise was the first African American student to attend Central High School in Painter.

This week, Kelley visited with Jaqueline Wise James as she shared her perspective and the importance of perseverance in any “first” in life.