The Briggs – De Laine – Pearson Foundation (BDP Foundation), is a 501(c)(3), non-profit, tax-exempt organization with IRS public charity status. The charitable, volunteer organization is located in the economically distressed, rural town of Summerton, South Carolina.
BDP Foundation was originally founded in 1993 when a group of individuals decided to form an organization to memorialize the participants of the Briggs v. Elliott case. Briggs v. Elliott was the first case in the twentieth century to challenge the constitutionality of racially segregated schools. It was the first of the five legal cases filed in the United States Federal Courts that led to the May 17, 1954, Supreme Court verdict on Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, KS.
BDP Foundation’s focus is on the education of individuals from low-income backgrounds. Its primary service area covers Clarendon County’s School District One community in the lower one-third region of the county.
South Carolina Education Association
South Carolina Council for the Social Studies Panel Discussion
Ms. Marguirite De Laine, Mr. Joseph A. De Laine, Jr. and Dr. Roy Jones, experts on the Briggs v. Elliott case, were invited by the South Carolina Council for the Social Studies to talk with their teachers about the origins and the lasting impact of the case. During the panel discussion, both De Laines and Dr. Jones highlighted the need to understand the individuals involved in the case as a way of better understanding Briggs.
