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Biography
Larry H. Spruill, Ph.D.

From time to time, every community celebrates the life of a native son who exemplifies the strength, values and opportunities that make it a unique municipality. Tonight, Mount Vernon is such a city and Dr. Larry H. Spruill is one of its dutifully recognized sons and daughters.

What makes Mount Vernon great are the same ingredients that make New York City extraordinary – its’ openness to diverse residents and the opportunities it provides for them to prosper and achieve “The American Dream.” The life of Dr. Larry H. Spruill is such a story.

In 1952, The Spruill family left rural North Carolina seeking a new life, the promise of freedom from segregation, and a progressive public education for their children. Dr. Spruill was a toddler when they arrived in our city. He grew up in a south side cold water flat previously occupied by earlier immigrant groups.

In 1955, he entered the Nathan Hale Elementary School. There he met social studies teacher, Mrs. Cecil H. Parker. She birthed in him a life-long passion for history. Over the next five decades, he achieved his dream of becoming an educator and scholar of local, national and global importance.

In 1956, his working poor parents were fortunate to move into the newly constructed, Levister Towers, also known as “The Projects.” As with other “disadvantaged” students, a public education was the only path available for him to pursue his dreams of a good life for himself and his family.

Dr. Spruill graduated from Mount Vernon High School in 1967. He was a stellar athlete and good student. He went on to an obscure up-state community college where he learned to study and understand what it would take to become a teacher and scholar.

In 1969, he graduated with an Associates Degree (A.A.) in Liberal Arts. He transferred to SUNY Stony Brook. In 1971, he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree (B.A.) in American History with certification to teach Social Studies. He was accepted into the Harvard University’s history graduate program. He declined and remained at Stony Brook because his wife was still pursuing her degree. In 1972, Dr. Spruill earned a Masters of Art degree (M.A.) in Latin American History and began his career as a college instructor. His major areas of study were Brazil and Mexico. He spent the next decade working as a criminal justice lobbyist, developing community organization skills and conducting his doctoral research.

In 1983, Stony Brook University awarded Dr. Spruill a Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph.D.) in American History. His dissertation, SOUTHERN EXPOSURE, PHOTOJOURNALISM AND THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, 1955-1968, has been highly acclaimed. His research provided him consultantships with publishers and television programs on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the struggle for equality. His research was used in David Garrow’s Pulitzer Prize winning work, BEARING THE CROSS. In 1984, he was selected as one of the Outstanding Young Men of America. Dr. Spruill’s scholarly career was not dedicated to the university but the community in which he lived. Mount Vernon and Westchester County have been his laboratory.

Dr. Spruill served as a historical and photographic advisor to the 1986 EMMY award-winning television documentary, EYES ON THE PRIZE. In 1998, he was a consultant and commentator with Dr. Arthur Schlesinger for the British Broadcasting Corporation’s (BBC) television documentary DECISIVE MOMENTS. This program examined the three most influential photographs of the 20th century. It was televised on its global network as part of its analysis of the close of the twentieth century and millennium.

Dr. Spruill is a renaissance man. He has distinguished himself as an educator, scholar, artists, theologian, author and community activist. He is formerly the Principal of Mount Vernon High School and currently holds that post at Wyandanch Memorial High School in Suffolk County. He is formerly the lead Administrator for Social Studies (K-12) for the Mount Vernon Public Schools. He also served as Scholar-in-Residence, Master Teacher, Chair of Staff Development, and Director of Multicultural Education.

Dr. Spruill served as a national consultant for TIME-LIFE EDUCATION. He specialized in Africana studies and interdisciplinary instruction. He conducted professional development workshops for major urban school districts across the nation (Memphis, Chicago, New York City, Scarsdale, Dade County, Florida, Irvington, N.J. etc.).

In June 1988, Dr. Spruill was appointed MOUNT VERNON CITY HISTORIAN. He is the first African American to hold such a post in New York. He still serves at the pleasure of Mayor Ernest Davis. He has worked with the city to establish a historical district and a city museum at local historical site, John Stevens House.

In 2001-2002, he was awarded by County Executive Andrew Spano the John Harmon Award as the inaugural WESTCHESTER COUNTY TRAILBLAZER IN HISTORY. He was the lead historical consultant for the Westchester County AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORICAL TRAIL.

In 1976, he was a founder of the ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY-BASED ARTISTS OF WESTCHESTER (AC-BAW Center for the Arts). Three decades later, the Center is one of New York’s longest operating community arts facilities specializing in exhibiting and presenting African American artists.

From 1983-1994, Dr. Spruill was the founder and educational tour leader of WIDER HORIZONS, an educational travel program for elementary and secondary students, teachers and parents. In 2002, the program was revived at Mount Vernon High School with a tour to three West African nations. He served as a consultant to the new project.

From 1989-1992, he was the architect and coordinator of PROJECT EXPECTATIONS, an innovative school improvement program located at Cecil H. Parker Elementary School. It led the nation in the area of Asian language studies, full-day kindergarten, and extended school day, week and year education in urban schools. The experimental k-6 school-within-a-school was funded with private funds. Dr. Spruill has been a key operative in other progressive educational reforms.

He is a published and exhibiting photographer, as well as a leading collector of historical photographs of Westchester County. He has curated major exhibitions for several galleries and museums, including the New York State Museum in Albany.

Dr. Spruill is a prolific author. Since 1980, he has written numerous publications in the fields of education, criminal justice, human services, the arts, history, photojournalism, civil rights and theology. He published a children’s book about a free African family living near historic St. Paul’s Church entitled, WHEN THE TRAIN CAME. This story about multiracial living in 18th and 19th century Eastchester has initiated a flurry of research about the African presence in our communities.

In 1992, he wrote, MAKING PROGRESS, A HISTORY OF THE MOUNT VERNON SCHOOL BOARD, 1894-1994. He also curated a major exhibition about one hundred years of education in Mount Vernon. He redesigned the 2002-2003 Mount Vernon School calendar to reflect its’ 150 years of public education in our city. He also designed the local historic exhibition for the McDonald’s restaurant on Gramatan Avenue.

Dr. Spruill continues to present and promote the preservation of the rich history of Mount Vernon and the Town of Eastchester. His pioneering book, A TIME TO REMEMBER, A PORTRAIT OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY OF MOUNT VERNON, NEW YORK is a major contribution to the historiography of Westchester County.

From 1993 to 1994, Dr. Spruill was weekly a columnist for the DAILY ARGUS of the Westchester-Rockland Gannett Newspapers. The column was focused on local history. It was well received and read by thousands. He hosted MULTI-CULTURAL TELEVISION (MCTV) a weekly cable television program featuring city and county diversity issues.

In the summer of 2007,will publish DIASPORA DEVOTIONS, a book of prayers of African people from around the world along with photographs from his thirty-year portfolio. It will be translated into five languages and distributed worldwide.

He has recently completed a series of companion books entitled, Down By The Creek, a cookbook utilizing colonial and early American recipes from the Town of Eastchester and Flowers In Winter, a book of proverbs from the lives of 19th century free Africans in Westchester. The most challenging literary piece from this series is a novel about a brilliant African American woman growing up in 19th century Westchester. Her quest to hold onto her ancestral land along Eastchester Creek is a work in progress. The book is entitled, LIBBY, THE SECRET WRITINGS OF SARAH ELIZABETH NELSON. In 2000, the Westchester Library System selected Dr. Spruill as one of its MILLENNIUM AUTHORS.

He is an Associate Minister at Allen Memorial COGIC, Mount Vernon, New York. In 1996, published WOMAN OF ETERNITY, THE MODEL CHRISTIAN WOMAN (Treasure House/Destiny Image). He is a composer and producer of African sacred music (gospel music). His lyrics and music have been recorded on several CDs including on a release featuring Grammy Award nominee, Rev. Timothy Wright.

He is a global citizen. He has traveled extensively, visiting nearly every region of the world. He served as a consultant to the inaugural CAPE TOWN MUSIC FESTIVAL (1998) and the SOUTH AFRICA MUSICULTURAL FESTIVAL (Johannesburg, February, 2000). He is actively involved in the movement to restore the African to his rightful place as a major contributor to civilization.

Dr. Spruill is currently compiling a thirty-year retrospective of his photographs. He is writing a screenplay based on his doctoral thesis. He is an avid genealogist and has finished a family history, which traced his North Carolina ancestors’ roots to 18th century Nigeria. He and his wife have three children and four grandchildren.

Larry H. Spruill, Ph.D.