Lee Academy is a grade 7–12 private school in Clarksdale, Mississippi. The school opened in 1970 as a segregation academy, with an initial enrollment of 654 students."History." Lee Academy. Retrieved on July 6, 2017. In 1970, when Clarksdale submitted to integration, the public schools closed for an "integration break". When they reopened after a one-day hiatus, nearly all of the white students transferred to Lee or other segregation academies.
As of 1986, the school had never had a black student. The headmaster at the time, Gene Barbour, told a newspaper that the school "would admit blacks as long as they were cultured or want a college prep background. We wouldn't take any shuckers or jivers."
In 2001, Bob Ellard, the former Clarksdale Municipal School District superintendent, recalled that the opening of Lee Academy was "the worst thing that ever happened to our schools." He explained that when the public schools integrated, most white families "ran" to private schools.
Many members of the football team at Coahoma County High School transferred to Lee Academy as integration via court order was about to occur.Hamlin, Françoise N. Crossroads at Clarksdale: The Black Freedom Struggle in the Mississippi Delta After World War II (John Hope Franklin series in African American history and culture). University of North Carolina Press, 2012. , 9780807835494. p. 196.
As of February 25, 2020, the school's official history page stated that the school was founded in part to ensure "retention of local control of policies". At the same time, the school's mission statement says that Lee "welcome[s] the application of students and staff members of any race, religion, color and/or origin and do not discriminate against individuals of such groups."Mission & Vision — Lee Academy - Clarksdale, MS (via Wayback Machine)About Lee Academy | About
92% of the students at Lee Academy were white, while at Clarksdale High School 92% were black.Dellinger, Matt. Interstate 69: The Unfinished History of the Last Great American Highway. Simon and Schuster, August 24, 2010. , 9781439175736. p. 147.
See also Coahoma Agricultural High School
References
External links Lee Academy