Druid Hills High School students to stage walkout over needed repairs
Superintendent reacts to student video
Druid Hills High School students say problems like mold, plumbing, electrical issues and water damage have plagued their campus for quite some time. Superintendent Cheryl Watson-Harris said the video "showed many areas of concerned throughout the building that we have a long known about and have been working to address in meaningful ways."
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - Students at DeKalb County's Druid Hills High School are planning to stage a walk-out Friday over repairs they say are much-needed on campus.
The students recently made a video documenting the problems at one of the oldest schools within the DeKalb County school system
DRUID HILLS HIGH PARENTS, STUDENTS RALLY OUTSIDE DEKALB COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING
In the eight-minute video, students used iPhones to document plaster falling off walls, water leaking in many areas and a ceiling hole so big a student is shown placing his entire hand through it. The students also describe the smell of human waste in a lunch area of the school, which has century-old water pipes.
"These signs right here say do not touch the poles or the outlets, right, because we are at risk of electrical shock," senior Townes Purdy can be heard saying.
"Human waste tends to flow up from up it and flood this area right here which is known as our senior picnic area, and we eat outside here every day," Purdy said on the video.
While the exterior is beautiful, the students said behind these brick walls neglect seeps through every inch of this campus.
The students were hoping that the district would take immediate action, however officials this week decided not to put the school in line for a major modernization project.
Instead, the DeKalb County Board of Education voted 5-2 this week to change its plan for repairs of schools districtwide. Druid Hills High had been on a list of schools set for major overhauls until it was removed earlier this year.
Parents and students supporting Druid Hills High rally outside a DeKalb County School Board meeting on April 18, 2022. (FOX 5)
Cost estimates to tear down and rebuild some parts of the school and completely modernize it range from $52 million to $60 million.
Druid Hills High has been in existence since the 1920s and its oldest building is about 95 years old. Actor Denzel Washington walked its halls and athletic fields when it was used to film the 2000 movie "Remember the Titans" — about a football team breaking down racial barriers. The school serves about 1,330 students and is among the most diverse in metro Atlanta, with about 40% Black students, 30% white, 14% Hispanic and 11% Asian.
Under the plan approved this week, Druid Hills might receive some money for individual projects just as other schools in the district will, but nowhere near the amount needed to fix its substantial problems now that it’s off the list for a major rebuild, board member Marshall Orson said.
The walkout is planned to happen this afternoon at 2:30.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.