George Washington Carver High School (Carrollton, Georgia)

George Washington Carver High School
Location
Carrollton , Georgia U.S.
Information
Former name	Goose Creek School for Coloreds
Type	Public
Nickname	Pirates

George Washington Carver High School was a public secondary school in Carrollton, Georgia. It served as the high school for black students until the public schools were integrated. The school closed when the schools were integrated.

History

The first black school in Carrollton opened on Pearl street in 1913. In 1932, using funds raised from a bond issue by the city of Carrollton, along with matching funds from the Rosenwald Fund, the first school for black children that reached past elementary opened under the name Carroll County Training School. In 1954 a new building was built for grades 8-12 and was named George Washington Carver High School. Carver had an initial enrollment of around 600, which remained fairly constant until the school closed. In 1965, a "school choice" plan was implemented, which allowed students to choose which high school they chose to attend regardless of race. A small number of black students chose to attend the previously all white Temple High School. In 1969, the courts mandated complete integration, and Carver was closed and all students were reassigned to previously all-white high schools. The buildings became the integrated Alabama Street School.

Entrance to University of West Georgia denied

In the 1955 and 1956 school years, every black senior at Carver applied for admission to the University of West Georgia, and all were denied admission because of their skin color. In 2002, the college apologized, and an anonymous donor created a scholarship fund for the descendants of the students who had been denied admission.

References

In 2005, the Carver High Museum and Archives was founded to collect and preserve the history of Carver and the African-American community of Carrollton.