It was named for William Syphax, the first president of the Board of Trustees of Colored Schools of Washington and Georgetown.

[3] The Southwest Neighborhood Assembly began to aggressively seek out a developer and found one, which purchased the school in 1999.

Manna redeveloped the school building into a condominium development, which opened in 2005 as Syphax Village.

The exterior features a red brick façade arched windows and white terra cotta trim.

The additions are also covered in red brick but have flat roofs, multi-paned windows, and limestone trim.