Mrs. Heather Green, Executive Director for the Kate Duncan Smith (KDS) DAR School in Grant, Alabama, was the program speaker for the January meeting of Francis Marion Chapter NSDAR. Accompanied by KDS students, McKayla Edmonds and Leigh Stahl, Mrs. Green spoke of the history and current happenings at KDS.
The
KDS DAR School is a privately owned public school and was established by
visionary women as an educational mission in an area that lacked educational
opportunities. Gunter Mountain was
chosen as the site of the now 240-acre school complex. The majority of buildings were
constructed in the 1920s and 1930s.
The school opened in 1924 and now boasts a student population of 1400 in
grades Kindergarten through 12th grade. The school campus is also listed on the National Register of
Historic Places.
KDS
School prides itself in focusing on Patriotism in its curriculum. The children are taught United States
history, the purpose of serving one’s country, citizenship, manners, and best
behavior. Each year, over $100,000
is given out through the school’s Scholarship Fund. Not only does the school address the children’s educational
needs, but also their health and personal needs through the full-time health
clinic.
Mrs.
Green spoke of ways that the DAR supports KDS through the State Regent’s
Project, collecting Campbell’s Soup labels and Box Tops, donations of school and
health clinic supplies, and through the use of Publix cards. Mrs. Green invited all DAR members to
come and visit KDS, especially in May for Senior Award’s Day and October for
Dedication Day.
McKayla Edmonds, a KDS Student President of the SGA ended the program by reading an essay she read at the 2011 Continental Congress in Washington, D.C.
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Pictured Left to Right:
Leigh Stahl, Heather Green (seated),
Ginger Page (seated, Francis Marion NSDAR, KDS School Chairman) and McKayla Edmonds
