Painted Charlie Kirk message on Ardrey Kell High rock under investigation
Law enforcement is investigating vandalism to the spirit rock at Ardrey Kell High School in south Charlotte after students painted it over the weekend with an “unauthorized” tribute to conservative media personality Charlie Kirk, the school’s principal said.
“We are aware that the spirit rock in front of our school was painted this weekend with a message that was not authorized or sponsored by the school or the district,” Ardrey Kell Principal Susan Nichols wrote in a message to parents Sunday. A parent shared the message with The Charlotte Observer.
“Acts like these are considered vandalism to school property and are in violation of the CMS Code of Student Conduct,” Nichols said in the statement. “If students were responsible for the vandalism they may be disciplined. Law enforcement has been contacted and we are cooperating with the investigation.”
The rock sits at the entrance of Ardrey Kell’s campus and operates like a billboard. It’s often painted with messages for students’ birthdays or messages of school spirit before football games.
This weekend, though, it was painted with the message “Live like Kirk,” referring to Kirk, who was assassinated at a Utah college Wednesday afternoon.
Kirk has been the subject of much online discourse since Wednesday, with some hailing him as a proponent of free speech, and others critiquing his past comments as targeting marginalized communities, including Black Americans and LGBTQ people. Supporters have launched a national campaign online to complain to the employers of posters who are critical of Kirk.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Bboard of Education member Melissa Easley posted on Facebook last week, saying that, while she does not condone political violence, she is not “mournful” for Kirk due to his past comments about the LGBTQ community.
Ardrey Kell’s rock was also painted with “Freedom 1776” and “John 11:25,” a reference to a Bible verse.
Students signed the message but only with their first names.
By the time students returned Monday morning, the message had been painted over, according to a parent who viewed it while dropping their student off. Instead, it now reads “Be Kind” on one side and “You are enough,” on the other. The names of the students who painted the rock over the weekend had been crossed out.
Nichols encouraged parents and students to use the district’s ‘Say Something’ app to anonymously report any information that may help in the investigation.
This story was originally published September 15, 2025 at 11:05 AM.
