Opelika Middle School

Opelika Middle School

In 1959, Henry G. Clift High School relocated to a new facility at 1206 Denson Drive and rechristened itself Opelika High School, the institutional name it bore from 1911 to 1918. U.S. District Court Judge Frank M. Johnson gave the Opelika city school system an ultimatum in August, 1969 to desegrega...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Taylor McGaughy
Format: Electronic
Published: Auburn University Libraries
Subjects:
Cultural resources
Online Access:https://omeka.lib.auburn.edu/items/show/47
format Electronic
collection Alabama Cultural Resource Survey Collection
building Auburn University
publisher Auburn University Libraries
topic Cultural resources
spellingShingle Cultural resources
Opelika Middle School
Taylor McGaughy
fulltopic Cultural resources
Education; Lee County, AL; Opelika, AL; Opelika Middle School; Henry G. Clift High School; Johnson, Judge Frank; J.W. Darden High School; Carver Elementary School; Jeter Elementary School; Desegregation; Civil Rights Era; Green v. New Kent County, VA;
description In 1959, Henry G. Clift High School relocated to a new facility at 1206 Denson Drive and rechristened itself Opelika High School, the institutional name it bore from 1911 to 1918. U.S. District Court Judge Frank M. Johnson gave the Opelika city school system an ultimatum in August, 1969 to desegregate and redistribute the black student body of J.W. Darden High School, Carver Elementary School, and Jeter Elementary School. Opelika High School integrated minimally in 1967 as it converted to a “Freedom of Choice” school, thus allowing black or white students to attend voluntarily. After the 1968 US Supreme Court decision in Green v. New Kent County., VA rendered “Freedom of Choice” schools unconstitutional and ordered the dismantling of dual school systems and the creation of systems “without a ‘white’ school and a ‘negro’ school, but just schools.” Because the Denson Drive building was too small to accommodate the influx of black students from Darden (Opelika’s black high school) and the white high school students who opted to stay in public school, the city hastily erected a new high school on Lafayette Parkway in 1972. Since 1972, the Denson Drive building has functioned as Opelika Middle School. The Denson Drive facility housed a segregated high school and a desegregated middle school and today remains a tangible vestige of Jim Crow’s demise in the city.
spelling Opelika Middle SchoolTaylor McGaughyEducation; Lee County, AL; Opelika, AL; Opelika Middle School; Henry G. Clift High School; Johnson, Judge Frank; J.W. Darden High School; Carver Elementary School; Jeter Elementary School; Desegregation; Civil Rights Era; Green v. New Kent County, VA;In 1959, Henry G. Clift High School relocated to a new facility at 1206 Denson Drive and rechristened itself Opelika High School, the institutional name it bore from 1911 to 1918. U.S. District Court Judge Frank M. Johnson gave the Opelika city school system an ultimatum in August, 1969 to desegregate and redistribute the black student body of J.W. Darden High School, Carver Elementary School, and Jeter Elementary School. Opelika High School integrated minimally in 1967 as it converted to a “Freedom of Choice” school, thus allowing black or white students to attend voluntarily. After the 1968 US Supreme Court decision in Green v. New Kent County., VA rendered “Freedom of Choice” schools unconstitutional and ordered the dismantling of dual school systems and the creation of systems “without a ‘white’ school and a ‘negro’ school, but just schools.” Because the Denson Drive building was too small to accommodate the influx of black students from Darden (Opelika’s black high school) and the white high school students who opted to stay in public school, the city hastily erected a new high school on Lafayette Parkway in 1972. Since 1972, the Denson Drive building has functioned as Opelika Middle School. The Denson Drive facility housed a segregated high school and a desegregated middle school and today remains a tangible vestige of Jim Crow’s demise in the city.Alabama Cultural Resource SurveyTaylor McGaughy2014-11-26Still Image and TextJPEG and Texthttps://omeka.lib.auburn.edu/items/show/47Image Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Opelika_Middle_School.JPG Text Sources: Joseph M. Bagley, A Meaningful Reality: The Integration of the Opelika, Alabama City School System, 1965-1972 (MA Thesis, Auburn University, 2007), 40-42. The Heritage of Lee County Book Committee, The Heritage of Lee County, Alabama (Clanton, AL: Heritage Publishing Consultants, 2000), 78.English
title Opelika Middle School
titleStr Opelika Middle School
author Taylor McGaughy
author_facet Taylor McGaughy
id AUcultural47
url https://omeka.lib.auburn.edu/items/show/47
_version_ 1788802433869152256

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