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TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR THE LONG HERITAGE OF THE BERKELEY TRAINING HIGH SCHOOL, UPON THE OCCASION OF ITS ONE HUNDRED THIRTIETH ANNIVERSARY, AND TO CONGRATULATE THE SCHOOL'S MANY NOTABLE ALUMNI.
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives are pleased to learn that the Berkeley Training High School Alumni Association will celebrate the school's one hundred thirtieth anniversary from September 3 through 5, 2010; and
Whereas, the first public school for African-American students in Moncks Corner, the Dixie Training School was founded in 1880 and was taught in one of the local churches by Mrs. Foster; and
Whereas, the first term lasted only three months but was soon extended to eight months in response to the impressive work of an early instructor, Mr. J. L. Mitchell; and
Whereas, twenty years after its inception, a one-room schoolhouse was built in 1900, which quickly became too small, so a building committee was formed, which began plans for a three-room school at the cost of six thousand seven hundred dollars; and
Whereas, with some financial assistance from the Julian Rosenwald Foundation, all segments of the community contributed funds for the new school under the enthusiastic leadership of Reverend James Van Wright, who encouraged residents to contribute a dollar or to volunteer a day of work with his slogan, "A Dollar or A Day"; and
Whereas, completed in 1920, the building was formally called the Dixie Training School, and the first certificate for graduation was awarded in 1924; and
Whereas, Professor Richard Allen Ready was elected principal for the new facility, and he faithfully served the community and its students for twenty-nine years; and
Whereas, in the 1930s, the name of the school was changed to Berkeley Training High School, and it kept that name until 1970; and
Whereas, in 1955, three years after the death of Principal Ready, the Berkeley Training High School was moved to a new and modern building located in an area known as Mitten Lane, and Joseph H. Jefferson, Sr., became the principal; and
Whereas, Principal Jefferson, the father of our friend and colleague, Joseph H. Jefferson, Jr., remained in this position until the desegregation of county schools in 1970 and the integration of Berkeley Training High School with Berkeley High School, at which time he became an area superintendent; and
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives are grateful for the rich legacy of the Berkeley Training High School and for the many who sacrificed to make education a reality for students of the Palmetto State who attended this institution. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, recognize and honor the long heritage of the Berkeley Training High School, upon the occasion of its one hundred thirtieth anniversary, and congratulate the school's many notable alumni.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be provided to the Berkeley Training High School Alumni Association.
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