By Staff
P.S. Jones graduates working to preserve their school’s legacy
By MIKE VOSS, Contributing Editor
When P.S. Jones High School graduates gather every two years for a reunion, it’s more than just a high-school reunion. It’s a family reunion, of sorts.
P.S. Jones High School graduates and others with connections to the former high school end their three-days of reunion, renewal of friendships and recollections of memories today. The recurring theme for each of the reunions could be “We Are Family” or “Family Affair.”
Lodge said children who attended the school left it with more than just an education. The school prepared its students for life outside the classroom, she said.
Evelyne Roberson, who graduated from the school in 1956, also remembers administrators and teachers who were more than just their job titles. They were mentors, role models and substitute parents, Roberson recalled.
Roberson said a renewal of that philosophy would help today’s youth who face many problems and temptations.
That respect and lessons learned at the school resulted in students who received an education and learned the work skills needed to help them enter their adult lives and accomplish many things, Roberson said.
Archie Harding, a graduate of the school and community leader in Beaufort County, delivered the keynote address at the memorial service. Harding also discussed the P.S. Jones High School students, teachers and administrators as being a family. Harding talked about the importance of preserving that family by preserving the school’s legacy.
Teachers and administrators at the school had no qualms about letting parents know what their children were doing and not doing at school. Students knew if they did something wrong at school, their parents would know about it within hours, he said.
The school’s teachers and administrators did more than just each the basics, Harding said.
Harding issued a challenge to the school’s graduates. He challenged each graduate to become a “mentor, role model and beacon of hope” to today’s youth so they will understand the importance of preserving the P.S. Jones legacy and continuing its influence on the community.
P.S. Jones High School was formed in 1924, when high-school grades were added to existing elementary-school grades. The school’s predecessor was the Washington Colored School. In 1950, the school was named after Peter Simon Jones, who once served as principal of the school. Because of integration, P.S. Jones High School students became part of the student body at Washington High School in 1969.