Robert E. Lee Academy

Robert E. Lee Academy is a PK–12th grade private school in Bishopville, South Carolina. The school was founded in 1965 as a segregation academy and is Protestant-affiliated.[3][4] During the 2015-2016 year, the school enrolled a single black child.[2]

Robert E. Lee Academy
Location
Robert E. Lee Academy
Coordinates34.2234882°N 80.2306271°W / 34.2234882; -80.2306271
Information
School typePrivate
Religious affiliation(s)Christian (nonsectarian)
Established1965 (1965)
Head of schoolBrad Bochette[1]
Enrollment316[2] (2016)
NicknameCavaliers
Websitewww.myleeacademy.org

History

Prior to 1965, Bishopville High School served white students, while Black students attended Dennis High School three blocks away. In 1965, the Federal government mandated the integration of public schools in South Carolina. In response, many segregation academies like Robert E. Lee Academy were established by white parents so their children could continue with a segregated education.[5][6] The school is named after the Confederate general and slaveholder Robert E. Lee. According to Tom Turnipseed, Robert E. Lee academy was part of a pattern of segregation academies established in response to desegregation and named after Confederate leaders.[7]

As of 2000, Robert E. Lee academy did not enroll a single black student. In contrast, 92% of students in Lee County public schools were black.[8] As of 2018, the school had 3 black students out of a total 268.[9] Tunispeed argued that, as a result of the support of Robert E. Lee Academy by Bishopville's white power structure, public schools in Lee county struggled to raise taxes to educate their predominantly black student populations.[7]

As of 2020, the school prohibits Afro style haircuts.[10] The head of school is Maria Watson.[10]

Academics

The academy is accredited by the South Carolina Independent School Association (SCISA). College credits can be earned at Robert E. Lee Academy through Central Carolina Technical College.[11]

Athletics

Although the school was founded to preserve segregation, the football teams of Robert E. Lee and Lee Central, whose student body is 96% black, meet together for an annual pregame meal, and have for a dozen years.[12]

References
  1. Brunson, Dennis (July 21, 2020). "Head of Lee Academy details the reasons behind name change". Sumter Item. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  2. "Private School Universe Survey". NCES. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  3. Estes, Steve. Charleston in Black and White: Race and Power in the South after the Civil Rights Movement. he University of North Carolina Press. p. 93. ISBN 9781469622323.
  4. Gloria Ladson-Billings (October 2004). "Landing on the Wrong Note: The Price We Paid for Brown". Educational Researcher. 33 (7): 3–13. doi:10.3102/0013189x033007003. JSTOR 3700092.
  5. "DENNIS HIGH SCHOOL". Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  6. Burns, Randy (February 18, 2011). "March on Elliott to celebrate Lee County's black leaders". Sumter Item. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  7. Turnipseed, Tom (April 12, 1999). "It's time for educational justice". The Times and Democrat. p. 16.
  8. "Segregation still a problem in Lee county youth baseball". Orangeburg Times & Democrat. August 23, 2000. p. 11.
  9. "Robert E. Lee Academy". Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  10. "Robert E Lee Academy Family Handbook 2019-2020" (PDF). Robert E Lee Academy. pp. 37, 38. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  11. "About". Robert E. Lee Academy. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
  12. Babb, Kent (October 30, 2014). "Black and white football players find common ground in a South Carolina county". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 January 2019.

See also
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