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School board rejects MOU transferring Pocahontas Landmark Center; public urges preservation
Summary
Powhatan County School Board declined to approve a proposed transfer of the Pocahontas Landmark Center (PLC) to the county and voted not to accept a related resolution and memorandum of understanding after public testimony pressing to preserve the complex and its African American museum.
Powhatan County School board members voted 3–2 not to accept Resolution R2025-49 and the accompanying memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would have transferred the Pocahontas Landmark Center from the school division to Powhatan County.
The vote followed more than an hour of public comment from alumni, descendants of Pocahontas High School, local historians and representatives of the Powhatan African American Cultural Arts Museum and the Powhatan NAACP. Speakers urged the board to delay demolition plans, preserve original school buildings and explicitly protect the museum's space in the facility.
Why it matters: The Pocahontas Landmark Center includes structures tied to segregated schooling and subsequent county-wide education history. Community members said the site has historical, cultural and educational importance and asked the board and county to explore reuse and preservation instead of partial demolition.
Board action and immediate effect
At the meeting the board considered a formal resolution (R2025-49) and an MOU proposed by the Board of Supervisors that would transfer title of the entire PLC to the county. The board voted to reject the…
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