By Her Own Design

At S. T. Taylor Design school, Ann is not welcomed like she expected. She is the first Black woman in the program. Mr. Taylor takes her aside and tells her that there is a mistake and that they will refund her. He thinks that she is young, inexperienced, and poor. She fights back by saying that she has been sewing since age eight, that she made the suit she’s wearing without patterns, and that Mrs. Lee has given her ample funds. In her head, she offers up a “prayer-wish” to stay. Mr. Taylor works out a compromise so that Ann can stay. She’s thankful.

The next day, she is assigned to classroom 24, when Mr. Taylor is teaching in classroom 25 with all the white students. The administrator says that this is the compromise they worked out. Ann has trouble seeing the board, but she makes do with her arrangement since she can still hear the lectures.

Ann ignores the racism of her classmates and the segregation at school. She focuses on her designs and gets to know garment vendors in New York City. She decorates her desk and classroom with cloth flowers and her designs.