People visit and enjoy food before the start of the event on Thursday highlighting the Piney Woods School. 

Community members gathered Thursday at the Texas African American Museum to learn about the history of the Piney Woods School and the opportunities it offers students.

The school was founded in 1909 by Laurence Clifton Jones after he learned about the high illiteracy rate in rural Rankin County, Mississippi. His goal was to help educate the children of impoverished black sharecroppers.

The Piney Woods School, located in Mississippi, is the only African American Boarding School in the country. It is a historic African American institution that offers students a unique opportunity to grow academically and personally.

Currently, the school has grades eight through 12.

Will Levi Crossley Jr., president and head of school at the institution, came out to speak on the opportunities the school offers Black children.

“We are the longest serving African American learning community in the country. We were started over a century ago to educate essentially the direct descendants of slaves,” Crossley said. “We have continued to serve students of African descent, other people of color and others in rural Mississippi since that time.”

The school is a college preparatory boarding program. Through the years it has proudly had a graduation and college admissions rate of 100%.

Crossley said in America much of the conversation about young African Americans revolves around violence and crime, and he hopes to change that narrative. He added that when he looks at the students at Piney Woods School, he sees great potential and talent.

At the school, educators believe in educating the head, heart and hands. This allows for educating the mind, nourishing spiritual passion and the development of skills to support themselves.

Another lesson taught to students at the school Crossley said is, “to who much is given, much is required.” He added that people have invested in the opportunity for each of the Piney Woods students to attend the school and as such they are expected to make good on that through hard work and responsibility.

“We believe that we are cultivating the next generation of African American success,” he said.

Crossley himself was offered a scholarship to attend Piney Woods School at the age of 12. He said the opportunity changed his life and he is so glad to be able to continue serving the institution and spreading the word of the opportunities the school offers.

“What makes me most proud is that the work I get to do is all work from the heart,” Crossley said.

When you come to Piney Woods School, you are welcomed into a community, a space for all students to live and learn together.

The campus is home to all the students and has grown to be a self-sustainable community over the years. It has a 250-acre farm, wells that provide fresh water, solar-powered electricity, among other things.

Being self-sufficient makes the school not only more cost effective, but also allows for teaching experiences for each of the kids to apply later in their lives.

There are many special features of the school including scholarships, students working on campus and family involvement.

The campus provides every student with a scholarship, and no one is turned away for an inability to pay. In turn, every student is expected to work at a job on the campus.

Families are also invited to be part of the experience and contribute to the education at Piney Woods School.

“We are not taking your child from you; we’re providing an opportunity for your child with you,” Crossley said. “We invite families to be a part of this experience too.”

Dr. Shirley McKellar, Tyler councilwoman for District 3, said at the closing of the event she is so proud to have Crossley come out and speak of the opportunities Piney Woods School has to offer.

She added that it is amazing through the years it has grown to become more than just a school, but also a township that sits on over 2,000 acres of land.

“Our ancestors did more with less, and we do a whole lot less with more,” McKellar said.

McKellar also made a surprise announcement, saying a documentary about Piney Woods School and its history will be made by Dallas filmmaker Eric Williams, the creator of “Finding Mirrium.”

She also announced investors who are part of the North Joint Ventures Inc., a corporation formed in Tyler consisting of 20 investors. They invested in a new restaurant, A Taste of North Delight, opening soon.

To learn more about the Piney Woods School, visit https://www.pineywoods.org/.