The Topaz Preschool

“When we arrived at Topaz Relocation Center, I was chosen to be the head teacher of the pre-school in Rec Hall 9... The recreation halls where we held the school were empty barracks. We had to put pictures on the walls. We had to take the children out of the building to the latrines. This was very difficult during the dust storms and icy winter weather. But we provided a well-rounded program of activities and the children soon became adjusted and happy.”

-Tomiko Takahashi Sasaki

Structuring Chaos

Despite the challenging conditions at Topaz, preschool teachers were able to provide young children a safe and nurturing environment. Below find the story of Tomiko Takahashi Sasaki, the teacher who would eventually become the Preschool Supervisor. Her daughter, Ruth Sasaki, shares her mother's journey from UC Berkeley graduate with a degree in Education unable to get a job in public schools because of racist policies, to her role as a leader of the Topaz preschool department.

You can also read this story and many others on the Topaz Stories website: https://topazstories.com/structuring-chaos/

After my mother died in 2011, my sisters and I were clearing out boxes in the basement of her house in the Richmond District in San Francisco when we found one labeled “Topaz.”