Morehead State University
The Revitalization of Hazel Green Academy
Grade Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
2nd Grade Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
KY House District #
5
KY Senate District #
5
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Rachel Rogers, PhD; Thomas Kiffmeyer, PhD
Department
Dept. of History
Abstract
Hazel Green Academy (HGA) was a residential college preparatory school founded in Wolfe County, KY in 1880. It offered a work-study program for those unable to pay tuition and offered STEM based courses to the often-overlooked students of Appalachia Kentucky. HGA continually added buildings to its campus to better serve both students and the community up until 1983, when the steady influx of public schools and decreasing enrollment caused the Academy to close. Only two buildings remain operational: the former general store, now the Jot ‘Em Down secondhand store, and the HGA Administrative building with classrooms attached to the HGA Auditorium. The Hazel Green Academy Leadership Team of students at the Craft Academy for Excellence in Science & Mathematics (CA), recognizing the historical and regional significance of the academy, is partnered with owners, Hazel Green Christian Church, and the community of Hazel Green, KY to restore and revitalize the HGA campus for innovations in educational outreach and community engagement. Utilizing CA service-learning student volunteers, regional companies and organizations, and the members of the Hazel Green community, the Craft Academy HGA Leadership Team (CA HGA L-Team) created and executed strategic priorities with the goal of propelling HGA to its original glory through the transformation of the HGA Administration Building and attached Auditorium. The CA HGA L-Team has designed five service learning all day trips to the campus bringing more than 150 Craft Academy students to renovated, clean, organize, restructure, paint, and landscape the campus. The creation of “Music on the Green” in the HGA Auditorium, the transformation of the Administration Building classrooms for educational outreach, and the second nomination of the campus onto the Historic National Register will work to preserve the original function and style of the Hazel Green Academy buildings while bringing innovations and new life to the campus.
The Revitalization of Hazel Green Academy
Hazel Green Academy (HGA) was a residential college preparatory school founded in Wolfe County, KY in 1880. It offered a work-study program for those unable to pay tuition and offered STEM based courses to the often-overlooked students of Appalachia Kentucky. HGA continually added buildings to its campus to better serve both students and the community up until 1983, when the steady influx of public schools and decreasing enrollment caused the Academy to close. Only two buildings remain operational: the former general store, now the Jot ‘Em Down secondhand store, and the HGA Administrative building with classrooms attached to the HGA Auditorium. The Hazel Green Academy Leadership Team of students at the Craft Academy for Excellence in Science & Mathematics (CA), recognizing the historical and regional significance of the academy, is partnered with owners, Hazel Green Christian Church, and the community of Hazel Green, KY to restore and revitalize the HGA campus for innovations in educational outreach and community engagement. Utilizing CA service-learning student volunteers, regional companies and organizations, and the members of the Hazel Green community, the Craft Academy HGA Leadership Team (CA HGA L-Team) created and executed strategic priorities with the goal of propelling HGA to its original glory through the transformation of the HGA Administration Building and attached Auditorium. The CA HGA L-Team has designed five service learning all day trips to the campus bringing more than 150 Craft Academy students to renovated, clean, organize, restructure, paint, and landscape the campus. The creation of “Music on the Green” in the HGA Auditorium, the transformation of the Administration Building classrooms for educational outreach, and the second nomination of the campus onto the Historic National Register will work to preserve the original function and style of the Hazel Green Academy buildings while bringing innovations and new life to the campus.