Oakdale Elementary was named a Bicentennial School of Excellence, only 21 schools were selected, three from each congressional district. We received a sculpture made of Alabama marble by sculptor Craigger Browne, an official banner, and a $5,000 grant to continue community and history-related connections at our school.
How we got to this point:
In May 2018, Oakdale Elementary applied to participate in the Alabama Bicentennial Celebration. After submitting a plan for the school year to celebrate and learn about our city’s and state’s past 200 years, we were one of two hundred selected (out of around four hundred) to be an official Bicentennial School!
With this honor, we were invited to the State Capitol in Montgomery on August 3, 2018, to attend a press conference where we received a $2,000 grant to support the implementation of our project during the 2018-2019 school year.
As the year progressed, we were required to record and collect evidence related to our Bicentennial Schools project; including photo and video documentation, any written or published materials, and any other data that further contextualized our project. During the summer, this information was sent to the Alabama Bicentennial Commission and they reviewed all two hundred entries.
On August 25, 2019, we received an email stating that we were chosen as a “Bicentennial School of Excellence”. A committee of judges gave this honor and only 21 schools out of the original two hundred, three selected from each congressional district, received this designation based upon the final reports we turned in to the Commission.
Principal Dr. Prewitt and lead Bicentennial teacher, Jennifer Anderson attended a ceremony announcing the 21 schools selected as Bicentennial Schools of Excellence at the Alabama Department of Archives in Montgomery on September 3, 2019. During the ceremony, Gov. Kay Ivey presented Oakdale with a $5,000 grant to support our continued commitment to student-led community engagement.
