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<br /> NARRATIVE
<br /> Central High School,formerly known as Hillsborough High School for Negroes,opened its
<br /> doors for African-American children of Northern Orange County, NC, in 1938. C.E. Hester was
<br /> its first principal and among the teachers that joined the Hillsborough faculty during Hester's
<br /> administration was Albert Leon Stanback. With his exemplary teaching and coaching skills, it
<br /> was no wonder that in 1942 when the school needed a second principal,the district chose
<br /> A.L. Stanback. His wife Catherine joined him as the lead senior teacher.They are lovingly
<br /> remembered for touching the lives of every graduate, as well as people in the community.
<br /> Even before Stanback's administration,the PTA literally became the quasi-school board
<br /> assisting the school in meeting the needs of Central High School students. As early as 1938,
<br /> the PTA went to Camp Butner, NC,and salvaged an old building,which became the band
<br /> room and the Agricultural Department. Also, under Stanback's administration from 1942-
<br /> 1964,the PTA helped to get better roads to make traveling in and around the school easier.
<br /> The lunchroom in 1946 was so poorly lit that parents made requests and secured funding to
<br /> get better lighting. In 1948,a bid for a library was passed, but the mandate for getting it
<br /> done fell to the PTA and other community agencies. Minutes from the Central High PTA from
<br /> 1954-1968 reveal other projects and programs undertaken by Stanback and the PTA:bought
<br /> playground equipment,an activity bus, band uniforms and Glee Club robes. He kept the
<br /> library opened for the black community to use three nights a week, purchased property for a
<br /> recreation center and paid off the cafeteria debt. In 1958 the main building,the office,
<br /> auditorium and several classrooms burned down,and like a phoenix that rises from its own
<br /> ashes,a young and beautiful Central emerged in the 60s,the structure we know today.
<br /> Stanback died in March 1964. The faculty and staff at Central High mourned his loss,for the
<br /> school had been a beacon, not only in the lives of the students, but in the lives of the
<br /> surrounding communities of Orange County as well. The News of Orange paid tribute to
<br /> Stanback: "He had courage to stand against odds for what he thought was right. The level
<br /> of achievement to which Negro citizens of Orange County are able to rise in the near future
<br /> will live as a testimonial to his teaching and his leadership."Four years after Stanback's
<br /> death, Central High, like many other black schools in the nation,was forced to close its
<br /> doors. Robert Kennedy's assassination on June 6, 1968, parallels the closing,for the 1968
<br /> graduation ended the era of separate schools by race and marked the beginning of
<br /> integration.
<br /> Central High provided nurturing and knowledge for its citizenry for nearly 40 years. It
<br /> produced some of the finest men and women in the world,evident through the success of its
<br /> graduates.They are teachers,college professors,judges, engineers, bankers, accountants,
<br /> business men and women,bishops,health personnel, hospital and postal administrators,
<br /> sales reps,writers, news reporters, managers, political candidates and a national sports
<br /> figure(Catherine Stanback was a mentor to NFL Hall of Fame star Tony Dorsett's mom).
<br /> Some of the brightest are now retired or about to retire.To name a few, Kerry Watson has
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