Laurel Academy.

[LA Admin]

In 1923, the founders of Laurel Academy, Joseph and Maryanne Laurel, first started the planning for their new school. They had one solid goal when designing the structure for the school and it's curriculm .. all students shall be treated equally.

It took the couple exactly three years before they finally finished designing and planning the school. After that, another four was spent building the school and getting things ready before it finally opened in 1930. When the school first opened up, things didn't work so great. Both black and white students were allowed in the school, but despite protests from the parents and the community, the school served it's purpose .. all students were treated equally.

After struggling for so many years, the school went through yet another problem when Joseph Laurel was diagnosed with cancer and set to die. Back in those days, everything was segregated and no one wanted to help the man who believed that blacks had the same right as whites. Still, he died, just like anyone would with his disease, but he left behind a memory that people would cherish for years and still cherish to this day.

On his bedside table, his wife found a paper that he had written for the mission statement of the school:

Though problems may occur and people may believe we will fail, we hold our heads high and try our hardest. We live together in perfect harmony and though problems will occur, we know we can overcome them, because we can do anything. Laurel Academy is not only a boarding school, but a place to bring all people together. In Laurel Academy, all students are equal.

To this day, the school has proven, against all odds, that everyone can be taught, students and teachers alike. It has proven that everyone is important. And most importantly, the school has proven that despite all differences, everyone has equal rights.

Welcome to Laurel Academy.
The school where everyone has an equal purpose in life.