Corinthian Clay Nutter, Walker Elementary School Historical Marker

Corinthian Clay Nutter, born in 1906, served as an influential educator in Merriam, Kansas. Earning her Kansas teaching certificate in 1938, she would continue her education at Emporia State University in pursuit of a Master's degree. She later accepted a teaching position at Walker Elementary School, a segregated school in Merriam, Kansas, for African American students. The school lacked funds and was in disrepair due to the racial segregation of schools at the time. When a new school was built in the district, but restricted Black students from attending, parents and activists in the area boycotted the Walker Elementary school. Nutter provided tutoring and classes outside of Walker Elementary during the boycott, using church basements or personal living rooms to conduct class. Esther Swirk Brown, a local activist, organized a legal case to challenge the segregation of the newly established school in the district, which eventually reached the Kansas Supreme Court, entitled Webb v. School District No. 90. After the case granted African American students attendance to the new school, Nutter would move to Olathe, Kansas, to teach and later become the principal at Westview Elementary School. Corinthian Clay Nutter passed away on February 10, 2004.

1. Corinthian Clay Nutter, Kansas City Black History. Accessed August 14th, 2022. https://kcBlackhistory.org/articles/corinthian-clay-nutter.
2. Corinthian Clay Nutter, Kansas Historical Society. February 2017. Accessed August 14th, 2022. https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/corinthian-clay-nutter/19914.
3. Hay, Gerald. Corinthian Nutter and the integration of Johnson County schools, Johnson County Kansas Government. February 18th, 2022. Accessed August 14th, 2022. https://www.jocogov.org/newsroom/corinthian-nutter-and-integration-johnson-county-schools.
4. Torres, Aaron. Do you know the Kansas teacher who integrated a school before Brown v. Board?, The Kansas City Star. March 11th, 2022. Accessed August 14th, 2022. https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article258582538.html.