On Saturday, April 16, the local nonprofit Burley Varsity Club, in collaboration with Albemarle County Public Schools (ACPS), will host a national historic landmark unveiling ceremony at Burley Middle School. The celebration will honor the significance of Burley, formerly Burley High School, in the Charlottesville-Albemarle community for having served as the area’s African-American high school for 17 years.
Burley achieved Virginia landmark status through the Virginia Department of Historic Resources in 2020, and it went on to be admitted into the National Register of Historic Places in the same year. The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation and is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate and protect America's historic and archeological resources.
Burley Middle School was originally built in 1950 as Burley High School, combining three schools for African-Americans: Jefferson High School, Esmont High School, and Albemarle Training School. The school opened in 1951 and was named for a prominent African-American community leader, Jackson P. Burley. In 1967, the school officially desegregated and became known as the Jack Jouett Junior Annex. In 1973, the school was renamed Jackson P. Burley, housing grades six and seven, and in 1974, it became an ACPS middle school.
Refreshments at the unveiling will be catered by the Albemarle High School (AHS) Culinary Arts Club, led by AHS teacher Malik Poindexter. This will serve as the group’s capstone project.
The event will take place at 11 a.m. and is open to the public.
This release was updated on April 11, 2022, to accurately reflect the start time for the ceremony on April 16, 2022.
CONTACT: Helen Dunn, Legislative and Public Affairs Officer
PHONE: 434-249-8379