AlUMNI say

What are your thoughts on the renaming?

“I think it’s really good that these (teachers) are getting recognized for what they did. Now, all the new students are going to be learning about (the history of) their schools.”

-- RUBY FRYE 2019 CHASE STREET ALUMNA

of stakeholder engagement from the outset and a process that has not felt transparent.”

While in support of honoring prominent historical figures, Clarke Central High School Associate Principal Dr. Cindi Lowe also brought the funding and process for the renamings into question.

“Anything that honors long-term people who contribute to a community is certainly worthwhile, (so) I think (the renaming) is wonderful,” Lowe said. “I’m also a realist, and one of the articles I read (said) it’s gonna cost a fortune to change the names of those schools. You’re going to (have to) change logos, stationary, signage, websites, so many things.”

While the logistics of the renaming remain debated, retired CCSD educator Johnnie Lay Burks is proud of the work she did during integration.

“I’m at peace,” Burks said. “Job well done, Johnnie, you didn’t drop the baton. My slave ancestors are (also) at peace, their work was not in vain. I had no idea what they went through, how they were tortured and treated and so forth. So, (the renaming) brought some peace to me.”

For CCHS senior and Alps Road alumnus Da’oud DeLane, the renaming comes as a sad end of an era, but an important reminder of Athens history.

“(The renaming is) kind of bittersweet. Alps Road is the name of the school that I’ve always known it as, but to know that there’s actually history behind it, which I didn’t know beforehand, is pretty cool,” DeLane said. “It’s inspiring to know that there were teachers who were brave enough to take that first step and attend these all-white schools.”

“I think it’s a pretty good thing to see (these) teachers being recognized. I think it’s always important to show the impact (and) contributions (people have) made in the past. It’s inspiring to know that there were teachers who were brave enough to take that first step and attend these all-white schools.”

-- DA’OUD DELANE, 2016 ALPS ROAD ALUMNUS

“Adding history into our school systems is very important. I hope that (the renaming) will teach more about and Black History and open people’s eyes (by) introducing a story in the history of our town.”

Featured: NEW NAME FOR ALPS: A picture shows the front of Alps Road Elementary School. For District 7 Representative and Clarke County School District Board of Education President Dr. LaKeisha Gantt, many public figures’ neutrality on the issue of renaming Alps Road and Chase Street Elementary Schools was disappointing. “With some issues, it can be a very dangerous thing to be neutral,” Gantt said. “Neutrality to me is sometimes the enemy of progress and securing justice.”

Featured: NO LONGER CHASE: A picture shows the front of Chase Street Elementary School. Retired Clarke County School District educator Johnnie Lay Burks believed that despite being a relatively new teacher during the time of integration, her calling was to teach at Chase Street. “I was a baby in education. I (was) extremely young in my career, but I (was) tough,” Burks said. “Chase was where I needed to be. It was like society was telling us we are less than, but we didn’t believe it.”

Photo by Isabelle Duncan

7, 2022. Dekle and her family have hosted Clarissa in their home since her arrival in the United States on Aug. 19, 2022 and the experience hosting Clarissa has helped Dekle in unimaginable ways. “I’ve dealt with a lot of mental stuff and depression and I didn’t think this was going to do anything to it, but (I’ve) found that I’ve been doing better with another person,” Dekle said. “This is really cheesy, but she has genuinely helped me through some like, deep stuff. So it has been such a great experience.”