‘The spotlight is overdue.’ Renamed CMS school illuminates Black leader’s legacy
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Name changes in Charlotte
Righting past wrongs and honoring civil rights heroes: Increasingly, local leaders are examining the history of Charlotte and choosing to rename some streets and buildings, including schools.
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At the newly-named Charles H. Parker Academic Center in west Charlotte, students have big dreams — of being everything from teachers to astrophysicists.
It’s because finally, students say, their school is named after someone who inspires the pursuit of education and opportunity.
The school was officially named Charles H. Parker Academic Center in a ceremony Wednesday that honored its namesake’s legacy.
Charles H. Parker was born into slavery in 1844 and later became a leader in Charlotte’s Black community, especially along West Boulevard.
His success was due to a lifetime of commitment to education, speakers on Wednesday said. Parker learned to read in secret as a child.
He helped start churches and schools, including Moore’s Sanctuary African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, which calls Parker one of its pioneers.
Parker also helped make Black homeownership possible in Charlotte. He encouraged the city’s Black community to buy land and build houses as he did.
His family helped build Parker Heights Apartments three decades after his death in 1939. The complex still provides affordable housing to West Boulevard residents, including around 60 students at the Parker Academic Center, according to Parker’s great granddaughter Dr. Valerie Avery.
Nandini Siripurapu, a 5th grader at the school, said Avery, along with other members of the Parker family, had become part of the school over the past few months.
On a trip to visit the school, Avery recounted a moment that a student came up to her, excited that he lived in the apartments, and excited that she was real.
“That was such a blessing for him to say that with such expression,” she said. “His legacy still speaks.
“On behalf of the Charles H. Parker family, we want to say thank you.”
CMS schools renamed
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools started the renaming process for Barringer in October. Parker was previously named for Osmond L. Barringer, who along with his family, were vocal white supremacists during the White Supremacy Campaign of 1898 to 1900.
After community, parents, alumni and students voted, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education unanimously approved in April the renaming of Barringer Academic Center, which houses students from kindergarten to 5th grade.
Gabriel Marseille, a 5th grader at Parker Academic Center, said the students researched people who influenced the West Boulevard community in preparation for the vote.
“We are honored to be named after Charles H. Parker,” he said. “He was an amazing man and we are proud to continue his legacy.”
Superintendent Earnest Winston said the historic occasion goes beyond the school — he called it a cause of celebration for the district, as the second school in just a few months to be renamed after Black Charlotte leaders.
“We do not want our schools to intentionally or unintentionally demonstrate values that our district does not support,” Winston said. “Today we honor the legacy of a man whose life work was centered on leadership and concern for Black residents.”
CMS, along with the rest of Mecklenburg County, is in the process of removing namesakes and other tributes to racist historical figures from its grounds. Earlier this year, the district renamed Zebulon B. Vance High School, honoring a slaveowner and Confederate leader, after Julius L. Chambers, the civil rights lawyer whose work led to a period of integration in CMS.
School board vice-chair Thelma Byers-Bailey, who represents District 2 including the Parker school, called the renaming a historic milestone.
“Today, we celebrate progress,” she said.
Board chair Elyse Dashew said the name increases visibility of the sometimes-unknown Black leaders that influenced the success of the community.
“This school has a long history and an even more promising future,” she said. “The spotlight is overdue.”
Dashew said at the moment, the district does not have plans to rename another school, as they’re focusing on pandemic recovery. But she says CMS will continue to honor its commitment to equity and inclusion.
“Some of our history has been suppressed in general across our nation,” she said. “I think having a school named for Charles Parker, knowing his legacy, knowing we can all strive to be like that, when perhaps his name wasn’t well-known before… that’s a really positive thing for the students in this school.”
