Mural depicts black students who prompted the integration of Stafford Public Schools

Local government school leaders unveiled a mural at Edward E. Drew Jr. Middle School in Stafford commemorating an attempt at integrating county schools in 1960.

Officials held an event to honor five students who tried to enroll in Stafford High School, where Drew Middle currently sits but was denied entry. Over 70 students, teachers, and onlookers watched a presentation made by some of those students, now seniors who attempted to integrate.

“I love the fact that our students get to view this mural every day and have a reminder of being tenacious and having the courage and perseverance to do the things they want to do,” said Drew Middle School Principal Amy Ivory.

The keynote speaker, Sherman White, spoke about the events leading up to that day on Sept. 1, 1960, when he and four other students arrived at Stafford High. The students applied to attend the high school in their junior year, but the county administration declined after school officials claimed the students submitted their applications late.

The presentation concluded with reading a poem by Frank White about the event titled “A Courageous Endeavor.” Two other men who were also students, Gary Mercer and Steve Tyler, joined White on stage and added their memories. The speakers also took questions from the audience about their experiences and thoughts, looking back on the event over 60 years later.

“These kids asked what about me? What about the way I looked? Would I be part of that,” said Sue Henderson of the Stafford County Museum and Cultural Center.

The Stafford Education Foundation and the Stafford Museum and Cultural Center gave $4,000 to create the mural, which Jenny Burgei painted, an artist with Capital Murals specializing in school murals in the Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia area.

“History is made every day, and the opportunities that these students have is because of the efforts of folks like these made not that long ago. It’s important because it brings Stafford history into the present day and helps people realize how these folks had an impact on their lives today,” said Scott Mayausky, second vice president of the Stafford Education Foundation.

On Sept. 1, 1960, White, Mercer, Tyler, along with Lois Vines and Rudolph Beverly tried to enter Stafford High School to attend classes. The group had submitted their applications on time, but county school officials had withheld them and then submitted them past the deadline.

The move resulted in a lawsuit filed by the NAACP, ultimately resulting in the full integration of Stafford County schools by 1964, making Stafford County the first county in the area to integrate its schools.

White would go on to coach high school sports and later become an administrator, which he currently holds at Hampton High School in Hampton.

When asked about the aftermath of his integration attempt in 1960, White said, “Follow your dreams, be true to others and be true to yourself. I pursued my dreams of becoming a coach once I went to college and was able to fulfill that before going into administration. So treat others the way you want to be treated and follow your dreams.”