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The
Case For Appalachian Studies
page 13
"We
don't believe that a school is a building full of children and teachers.
Nor is it just a group of students and teachers. We believe that a
school is a living part, the heart, of a community, and that the
community is all the people, bound close together in body and spirit.
"We believe that we have now a real community in Blackey, that we
have now a real school struggling without our community to help our
children and the rest of the community grow. What we lack is a
building.
"We are a community and a school in search of a house."
As might be
expected, their proposal was not well received in Frankfort. In
the words of Gaynelle Begley, "They showed up and told us what we
could and couldn't do. They acted as if it were the first time
they had ever consulted with a community people. All that the
planners were worried about was the number of square feet, exits,
commodes, and money. I'm all for exits and such ... but we figure
it takes as many commodes in a consolidated school as in one of our
storefronts. We're concerned about money, but we're more concerned
about children."
The community's record in caring for its children seems to back up Mrs.
Begley's claim. The Blackey parents and teachers have sponsored
their own Mountain Music Festivals for children, and brought in such
diverse groups as an Appalachian Puppetry Caravan from Berea College and
traveling plays sponsored by the Lincoln Center for the Performing
Arts. Inside the schools themselves they have sponsored the only
breakfast program in Letcher County, instituted
students-teaching-students programs, and invited local adults in to
lecture on the history of the area.
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