Eugene Skinner started his first day as assistant superintendent of schools in the Omaha Public Schools on Sept. 1, 1969.
Sheritha Jones, World-Herald Historian
He was the first Black person to reach this administrative level at Omaha Public Schools.
Skinner went from director of community relations to assistant superintendent for community and human relations, a new position.
He had suffered racism as a Black youth growing up in Omaha and battled to open doors for himself and others.
Skinner used his legs to find a way to college. He attended the University of Iowa because the University of Nebraska and other schools in the Big Six, predecessor to the Big Eight Conference, could not give athletic scholarships to Black athletes at the time.
He joined OPS in 1940 at Long School as the first Black permanent teacher. In 1947, he became the first Black school principal in Nebraska. Before becoming an assistant superintendent, he …