Black alumni want to save Ligon school building. Wake staff see merits elsewhere
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Alumni demand renovate or rebuild Ligon’s 1953 main building on hilltop.
- District staff say building new school on ballfields limits disruption.
- Board will weigh community input and choose option that serves students.
Plans to rebuild Ligon Middle School are leading to a potential showdown between the Wake County school system and the alumni of the former Black high school on the campus.
Alumni of the former John W. Ligon High School want the existing 72-year-old main building renovated or a new building to be built on the existing site on the top of the hill in Chavis Heights in Raleigh. Wake County school administrators say a third option — to tear down the main building and build a new school elsewhere on the property — has the most positives and fewest negatives.
School administrators didn’t officially make a recommendation when they presented the three options on Tuesday to the school board’s facilities committee. But administrators listed mostly negatives for the first two options that have been supported by the high school alumni.
The decision will ultimately fall on the board as it weighs competing interests. Board members and administrators said they will seek community input before making a decision.
“We’re not going to satisfy 100% of the folks,” school board chair Tyler Swanson said after hearing staff’s presentation. “But I think we have to do what’s best for teaching and learning long term.”
Historic Black school in Raleigh
Ligon High School opened in 1953 off Lenoir Street as Raleigh’s Black high school during Jim Crow segregation. The school is named after John W. Ligon, a respected educator, minister and important leader in Raleigh’s Black history.
In 1971, Ligon was converted to a junior high school as part of an effort to integrate the Raleigh City Schools. It’s now a Wake County magnet school serving middle school students from across the district.
Ligon is scheduled to get a $141 million renovation that begins in 2027.
Members of the J.W. Ligon High School Alumni Association have been raising concerns after hearing about a proposal to tear down the historic main building and relocate the students to a new building that will be built down the hill.
“Let us keep Ligon standing tall as a visible reminder of faith, hope and love for generations to come and not a new source of division,” Daniel Coleman, a member of the high school alumni association, said at a school board meeting in October.
Some school board members, such as former board chair Chris Heagarty, have criticized how staff has been presenting the options for the project.
Regardless of which option the board chooses, Superintendent Robert Taylor said they will get community feedback on a proper memorial for Ligon. Wake has created a website (wcpss.net/LigonCampusProject) to provide the community wit h information on the project.
“I am confident that this project will be a testament to the legacy of John W. Ligon and a source of pride for our entire community,” Taylor said during Tuesday’s board meeting.
Renovate the existing building
In Option 1, the main building would be renovated with students moved to mobile classrooms that would be placed on the ball fields during the work. The project would cost $102.3 million and last 51 months.
Administrators say this option preserves the legacy of the high school by maintaining the building and is the least expensive option of the three. But the presentation is mostly filled with negatives, including:
- Likely loss of magnet students due to disruption of services such as access to performing arts programs and athletic programs during renovations.
- Difficult or impossible to improve traffic congestion if current building remains.
- Renovating the building wouldn’t address the fact that the campus is undersized compared to current Wake middle schools.
Alumni have pointed to how the school was not treated equally compared to white schools for resources during segregation. Administrators flipped that argument back on the high school alumni.
“Precious taxpayer dollars spent on the renovation of a facility that cannot accommodate current WCPSS middle school standards,” according to the district presentation. “Regrettable part of Ligon history (receiving ‘less than’) would be repeated.”
Build new school on the top of the hill
In Option 2, the main building would be torn down and the new school constructed at its current location on the top of the hill. Students would be relocated to mobile classrooms on the property or elsewhere during the work.
Option 2 would cost $148 million and take 56 months.
Administrators say this option will give Ligon a state-of-the-art facility while allowing it to preserve its location on campus. But administrators listed several negatives, including:
- Likely loss of magnet students due to disruption of services such as access to performing arts programs and athletic programs during work.
- There are no alternative sites off campus that the students can be relocated to if they don’t build the mobile classrooms on the property.
But the biggest ding on the option placed by staff is that it’s the most expensive of the three choices. Like option 1, staff listed this proposal as not being a good example of stewardship of taxpayer dollars.
Build new school on the ball fields
Option 3 would involve constructing a new building on the site of the ball fields. Students would stay in the main building until the new facility is ready. They’d then move into the new building while the existing building is torn down and new ball fields are built.
Staff says it would cost $121.8 million and take 45 months.
Option 3 is the one that has drawn the complaints of the high school alumni, because it would preserve neither the main building nor its location on top of the hill. But administrators say little remains of the original 1953 building.
Administrators say locating the school near the Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. side of the property would increase its visibility. Staff also say they can preserve the legacy of the high school with a new “alumni pavilion” for community gatherings and design elements in the new building.
The district’s presentation lists almost exclusively positives for this option, including:
- Allowing the middle school program to continue uninterrupted during the construction.
- Providing a new state-of-the art school with a 75-year life span that meets current Wake standards for educational adequacy.
- Providing ability to make improvements to address traffic congestion.
- Option can likely be accommodated within the district’s budget for the project.
This story was originally published December 16, 2025 at 3:00 PM.
