"A Tradition of Excellence, A Culture of Learning"
Randolph Elementary was named after it's street location. One of the important roles that public schools were expected to perform at the time was an encouragement of patriotism to assure a homogenous American society. In keeping with expectations, architect Thomas W. Williamson, who would later shape the new Topeka High School, designed the building along colonial lines, rare in the Midwest. However, its internal functional design was entirely modern. Reflecting expanded interest in preschool education, the building had special quarters for kindergarten. The total cost for construction, land, and equipment was $166,562.
Completion of the Randolph building meant adjustments for other area schools. The Boswell School lost its elementary grades to the new facility and became exclusively a junior high, while the College Hill School at 17th and High, began to serve health disabled children. After some delay caused by problems with connecting the new building to the city's sewers, L. L. Kauffman, who transferred as principal from the College Hill School, opened Randolph on September 30, 1927, will 11 teachers, a custodian and 368 pupils.
Facts about Randolph Elementary
- Randolph was constructed in 1927 as a two-story, brick Colonial-style building.
- Randolph is the only continuously operating elementary school in Topeka USD 501 that was part of the Brown vs. Board of Education school desegregation case.
- As many as 570 students were taught in the building in 1960; now enrollment averages about 400 due to evolved classroom configurations.
- The current multipurpose room was added to Randolph in 1972.
- Randolph Celebrated their 90th anniversary on September 30, 2017.