Equalization schools were designed as model buildings with the latest insights in school architecture. Identical structures were built for black and white students in a futile attempt to forestall integration. Consequently, once integration became the law of the land, many communities owned duplicate facilities that were costly to maintain. In many places, the African American equalization schools were closed and eventually abandoned, wasting public resources and destroying black material culture.
Such was the fate of the Chilton County Training School, but in 2010 the county granted ownership of the derelict building to the Chilton County Training School Alumni Preservation Association. That group has worked to protect and preserve the vandalized structure and to promote awareness of the historic place. The Association hopes to re-vitalize the school and create a park and community center, but it desperately needs financial support to succeed.
For more information on Chilton County Training School and to help with its revitalization, please contact Billy Singleton, singletonbillj@gmail.com. For more information on equalization schools in Alabama, contact dorothy.walker@ahc.alabama.gov.