The David School
| The David School of David, Kentucky | |
|---|---|
 Learning While Serving | |
| Location | |
|
David, Kentucky United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Private school |
| Denomination | Non-denominational |
| Established | 1974 |
| Principal | Rebecca Bodish |
| Grades | 8th-12th |
| Color(s) | Maroon & Gray |
| Mascot | Falcon |
| Website |
thedavidschool |
The David School is located in David, Kentucky, a rural village in the Appalachian Mountains in the USA. The school is a non-denominational private high school with a mission to serve underprivileged and struggling students.
The David School was started in the 1970s by Danny Greene, originally from New York City, who moved to David as a college sophomore and was moved by the rampant poverty and illiteracy there.[1] Greene retired as executive director in 2005 and moved to San Antonio, Texas, for family reasons, according to newspaper accounts, but remained involved with the David School as a fund-raiser.
Kentucky's Attorney General conducted an investigation, beginning in 2011, into Greene's alleged mismanagement. Upon presentation of the evidence, in May 2012, Floyd County Circuit Judge, Johnny Ray Harris, assigned a new school board. The ruling also banned Greene and Sister Emma Kriz, the former principal, from any further school involvement.[2]
The school's campus was built largely with volunteer labor and many of the workers at the David School are technically long-term volunteers rather than employees and are provided with a small stipend and housing.
History
The David School was founded in 1974 in the coal mining community of David as an alternative for students at risk of dropping out of public schools.
In a region where the public school dropout rates exceeds the national rate and where more than 50 percent of the adult population are dropouts, The David School offered the community a multifaceted educational network that attempted to address some of the educational and social problems of the area.
Presently, the David School only operates as a high school for students in grades 8-12, but historically the David School has also served pre-schoolers, high schoolers, and adults who are either illiterate or in need of GED instruction. In its first quarter century, the high school enrolled close to 2,000 dropouts and youth at high risk of dropping out. Many have learned to read and several thousand more have studied for the GED in programs led by The David School.
The school is located in the small community of David, from which it takes its name. David was once what is commonly called a "coal camp" in western Floyd County in Kentucky's economically depressed Appalachian region. When deep mining operations ceased, the coal company left the area, and its holdings were eventually bought by the newly formed, community-based David Community Development Corporation.
The founders of the school, three individuals concerned about the plight of young dropouts, incorporated the school in the Fall of 1973. They recruited volunteers from around the country and started classes in the two-story, former commissary building in January 1974. The 10 original students studied academic subjects in the morning and received hands-on vocational experience in the afternoons as they helped to renovate the old building, which, like most structures in the "camps", was not built to last.
Over the years, through grants and contributions, the school had also acquired the company's former movie theater to house the vocational program and adult education. A garage/filling station for teaching auto mechanics and to give students business experience, a former scout lodge to accommodate a preschool and two dwellings to house teachers were also acquired.
In 1989 through a unique partnership with the David Community Development Corporation and with funding from foundations, corporations, and individuals, The David School purchased 200+ mostly-wooded acres. It then began the long process of constructing a new 17,000-square foot classroom building and 3,000 square foot vocational building.
This complex is home to the high school, family learning center, and the vocational education program. Cabins, which look out over a small pond, left over from the days when the hollow contained the coal company reservoir, house volunteers and other school guests. The forest surrounding the school is a wildlife refuge and a wondrous place for hikers.
Country Boys
The David School is featured in the six-hour documentary series Country Boys which was broadcast in Frontline on PBS in 2006.[3] Filmmaker David Sutherland spent 3 years at the David School chronicling the lives of two at-risk adolescents, Cody Perkins and Chris Johnson, following their lives as they grapple with and overcome daunting emotional and physical obstacles related to their unique family lives and the economic situation of this region.
References
- ↑ Estep, Bill (May 6, 2012). "Legendary David School in Floyd County appears at risk of closing". Lexington Herald-Leader (Lexington: The McClatchy Company).
- ↑ Estep, Bill (January 3, 2013). "'Things are starting to turn around' for The David School in Eastern Kentucky". Lexington Herald-Leader (Lexington: The McClatchy Company).
- ↑ Sutherland, David (January 2006). "Country Boys". Frontline. Season 24. Episode 1. PBS.