Sumter County School District (Alabama)

Sumter County School District is a school district operating public schools in Sumter County, Alabama; its headquarters are in Livingston.[1]

History

In 1968 the district's student body was 16.4% white. At the time the county had fourteen public schools, three of which were majority white. White people reacted to the Lee v. Macon County Board of Education case. By 1970,[2] Sumter County Schools had been ordered to de facto desegregate through the courts. White families had immediately moved their children to Sumter Academy, a segregation academy, leaving the public schools majority black.[3] A former chairperson of the school board stated that a successful boycott at Livingston Junior High School in 1978 motivated African-Americans to run for the school board, and in 1980 African-Americans gained three of five school board seats, giving them a majority of the school board. That year the student enrollment was 2% white.[2]

In the 2007-2008 school year it had 2,300 students.[4] In 2009 it had 838 high school students, a factor that resulted in it merging its two high schools into one.[5] In 2017 the total enrollment was now 1,500. Eleanor Robinson James, who had retired from being a teacher at Sumter County schools, reported that many parents had placed their children in other counties.[4]

In 2018 the district board attempted to get an injunction against the opening of University Charter School (UCS).[6]

Schools

Former schools:[11]

  • Livingston High School
  • Sumter County High School - York
  • North Sumter Junior High School - near, but not in, the Panola CDP[12][13]
    • In 2003 there were concerns among parents that the board might close the school.[14] Circa 2018 the State of Alabama education authorities gave the school an "F" rating, making it one of six in the Black Belt region to get this rating.[15] In its final year, the state of Alabama had provided funding for five teachers.[4] In 2018 the Sumter county school board voted to close the school.[15] It had 90 students at the time.[4]
  • Bell-Brown Career Tech (Livingston)
  • Livingston Lab School - In 1968 all of the teachers were white, and 98.5% of the students were white. It closed by 1970.[2]

Academic performance

Statewide testing ranks the schools in Alabama. Those in the bottom six percent are listed as "failing." As of early 2018, both York West End Junior High School and Sumter Central High School were included in this category.[16]

Extracurricular activities

As of 2016 the district lacked extracurricular programs and did not have any baseball or soccer teams.[10]

References
  1. Home. Sumter County School District. Retrieved on January 15, 2019. "716 Country Club Rd [...] Livingston, AL 35470"
  2. "Fifteen Years Ago... Rural Alabama Revisited." The United States Commission on Civil Rights. Clearinghouse Publication Number 82. December 1983. p. 77 or p. 85 (PDF document p. 84/163)
  3. Farzan, Antonia Noori (2018-08-15). "Sumter County, Ala., just got its first integrated school. Yes, in 2018". Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  4. "Struggling Sumter schools face more questions as charter opens". AL.com. 2018-10-15. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  5. Reynolds, Brian (2009-02-26). "Sumter County schools may fuse". Tuscaloosa News. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  6. Williams, Andrea (2018-07-11). "Sumter County school concerns". WTOK. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  7. "Contact." Sumter Central High School. Retrieved on January 15, 2019. "13878 US Highway 11 York, AL 36925 "
  8. Williams, Andrea (2011-08-09). "Students Attend First Day at Sumter Central High". WTOK. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  9. "Contact Us." Sumter County School District. July 1, 2006. Retrieved on January 15, 2019. "Kinterbish Junior High School 5586 Kinterbish 10 Cuba, Alabama 36907"
  10. Carsen, Dan (2016-04-22). "School Funding In Alabama: A View From Sumter County". WBHM. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  11. "Our Schools." Sumter County School District. July 13, 2006. Retrieved on January 15, 2019.
  12. "2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Panola CDP, AL." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on January 15, 2019.
  13. "Schools." Sumter County School District. November 14, 2012. Retrieved on January 15, 2019. "Panola Parkway Hwy 34 Panola, Alabama 35477"
  14. Kampis, Johnny (2003-05-29). "Parents, students express concern over Sumter County schools". Tuscaloosa News. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  15. "SUMTER COUNTY SCHOOLS TO CLOSE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL". WVUA. 2018-04-12. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  16. "Failing Alabama public schools: 75 on newest list, most are high schools". AL.COM. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
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