Atkins High School

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Atkins High School in Winston-Salem North Carolina, one of America's National Register of Historic Places, was dedicated on April 2, 1931 as a facility for “Negro children”. The building, equipment and grounds were valued at that time at $400,000 (USD). This was paid primarily by the city, with a grant of $50,000 from the Julius Rosenwald Fund.

Contents

[edit] History

Julius Rosenwald was a president of Sears Roebuck who was noted for supporting black schools throughout the south. The first principal was John Carter, who had previously been a professor at Winston-Salem Teacher’s College. He continued as principal until 1959. The school curriculum included both an academic track for those students intending to go on to college, and a vocational track for those intending to start work immediately.

Dr. Simon Green Atkins came to Winston-Salem from Raleigh, North Carolina, where he graduated from St Augustine Normal and Collegiate Institute (now St. Augustine College). In 1890, he accepted the position of principal of Depot Street School in Winston-Salem. Dr. Atkins was the organizer, secretary, and agent of the board that started Slater Industrial Academy in 1892, now Winston-Salem State University. Dr. Atkins served as principal of Slater on a part-time basis for the first two years of its existence, while he continued his work as principal of Depot Street School. As Slater Industrial Academy grew, the demands upon Dr. Atkins' leadership and direction increased. In 1895, he resigned his position at Depot Street School to devote himself entirely to Slater Academy.

The Atkins name was transferred to a new building housing the "Simon G. Atkins Academic and Technology High School" in September 2006.

[edit] Notable faculty

  • John Carter - Principal.
  • Togo West Sr. - Assistant Principal, Principal, Math teacher, Driving instructor.

[edit] Notable alums

  • William Bell (1957) - Mayor of Durham, North Carolina.[1]
  • Walter J Davis Jr - Vice Admiral United States Navy.[2]
  • Carl Eller - Minnesota Vikings.
  • Talmadge Fair (1957) - President and Chief Executive Officer, Urban League of Greater Miami, Inc. Member of the Florida State Board of Education.[3]
  • John Feemster - Thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon.[4]
  • Happy Hairston - Los Angeles Lakers.
  • David R Hedgley Jr (1954) - Mathematician and developer of groundbreaking computer algorithms. [5]
  • George Edward Hill (1957) - President and CEO, Winston Mutual Life Insurance Company; senior vice president, Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company, Los Angeles CA. (Michigan Chronicle, April 9-15, 1997, page D-5).
  • Victor Johnson - Educator, Education Activist, Member of the board, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.
  • Togo D. West, Jr. (1959) - Secretary of the Army, Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
  • Marian Wilson-Sylvestre (1961) - Executive Director and External Relations Officer, American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter Alameda County California.
  • Larry W. Womble - Member of the North Carolina State House of Representatives.

[edit] References

  1. ^ City of Durham, North Carolina (2007). Durham, North Carolina Mayor's Office (English). City of Durham, North Carolina. Retrieved on October 7, 2007.
  2. ^ Department of the Navy. [http://www.chips.navy.mil/authors/walter_davis.html Vice Admiral Walter J. Davis, Jr. Director, Space & Electronic Warfare] (English). Department of the Navy. Retrieved on October 14, 2007.
  3. ^ Florida Department of Education (2007). T. Willard Fair, Chairman (English). Florida Department of Education. Retrieved on October 7, 2007.
  4. ^ Knox College (1999). Knox College to Graduate 244 Seniors (English). Knox College. Retrieved on October 7, 2007.
  5. ^ Living Black History; David Hedgley, The Father Of 3D Graphics (English). BlackWebPortal (2005+author=James I Neusom). Retrieved on November 9, 2007.

[edit] External links