William Syphax School
William Syphax School, now known as Syphax Village, is a historic former school building in the Southwest Quadrant of Washington, D.C. that now houses condominiums. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
History
The William Syphax School historically served African American students. It was named for William Syphax, the first president of the Board of Trustees of Colored Schools of Washington and Georgetown. He supported the notion of a unified public school system and supported equal educational standards. He was responsible for the construction of the Charles Sumner School and the Thaddeus Stevens School.A building for the school was completed in 1901 and was expanded in 1941 and again in 1953. It ceased serving as a school in 1994. Three years later, residents complained that it had become a drug market and crack house. The Southwest Neighborhood Assembly began to aggressively seek out a developer and found one, which purchased the school in 1999. The old school building was officially declared a historic landmark in 2003, and the newer buildings were razed starting in 2001. Manna redeveloped the school building into a condominium development, which opened in 2005 as Syphax Village.