Mace's Lane High School
The Mace's Lane
Community Center, Incorporated (MLCC)
The Mace’s Lane Community Center, Inc. (MLCC) was organized and established as a not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) in September 2018 by a partnership formed between the Good Shepherd Association and the Mace’s Lane High School Alumni Association. The MLCC will oversee the activities to preserve and transform the historic Mace’s Lane High School building into a community center. The community center will foster inclusive community participation and provide an environmentally safe and friendly facility for children, the arts, education, recreation, celebration, and locally based human services in order to increase opportunity for personal and collective growth of the Dorchester County, Maryland community.
The Mace’s Lane High School was an all African-American student high school that opened in 1952. During segregation, all African-American students that lived in Dorchester County, Maryland attended the high school between 1952 and 1969. When all the schools within the County were forced to integrate, the school was re-purposed as a junior high school until 2004. Later a new middle school was built. The old structure was abandoned and remains empty to this day.
MLHS Students
Early 1950's
Mace's Lane High School Entrance & Arial View of New Community Center
Mission & Vision
Mission Statement: Preserve, Inspire, Empower
In addition to preserving the school building, the mission of The Mace’s Lane Community Center is to: 1) preserve the original building structure as well as the rich history of the African American educational experience; 2) inspire present and future generations to excel in every area of life; and 3) empower the community to take advantage of every opportunity that presents itself.
Vision Statement
To preserve and transform the old Maces Lane High School into a community center that fosters inclusive community participation and provides an environmentally friendly facility for the arts, education, recreation, celebration, and locally based human services in order to increase opportunities for personal and collective growth in our community.
Edythe M. Jolley
Principal, Mace's Lane High School
Museum and Cultural Center
The Edythe M. Jolley Museum and Cultural Center is being created as part of the project to honor the faculty and staff of Mace’s Lane High School and their tremendous commitment to ensuring the lifelong success of their students in the pre and post-20th century civil rights era. The story of Mace’s Lane High school documents the indisputable truth that anyone can succeed with discipline, hard work, and encouragement from supportive adults, despite the racism of the era.
A group of accomplished Mace’s Lane alumni envision a community center where young people could realize their potential through meaningful programming and supportive supervision. Low-performance rates of present-day Dorchester County students served as the impetus for them to take action. An alliance with the Boys and Girls Club, with a similar mission and time-tested programming, proved the perfect partner. Completion of this compelling museum with a powerful message will provide a “real-life” example that supports both the Mace’s Lane Community Center, Inc. mission and that of the Boys and Girls Club.
The Community Center
The Maces Lane Community Center will provide vital resources and activities for youth and adults in Dorchester County, while preserving this cultural landmark.
The old Maces Lane High School building is nearly 26,000 square feet of space of which approximately 17,000 will be repurposed to serve as a community center for the entire county. The structure is within a residential community with close proximity to several secondary educational institutions. MLCC will house:
- A Boys and Girls Club
- A museum depicting the history of Maces Lane High School and the education of the African American community during segregation and after integration
- A full size gymnasium which can also be use as an auditorium for larger venues, such as a concert or a banquet
- Spaces to serve as incubators for local home-grown community-based programs.
Little is known about the story of Black segregated education on the Eastern Shore of Maryland between 1952 and 1969. The Edythe M. Jolley Museum and Cultural Center has the potential to become a national attraction in part because of its proximity to the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center. Visitors will be able to tour The Jolley Museum which picks up the story of black equality and freedom one century later.
Sharing the same address as the Boys and Girls Club, visitors will see the connection between the tireless commitment on the part of the Mace’s Lane High School faculty and staff of that era and the work of the Boys and Girls Club organization today.
Top from left: Mrs. Marion Fisher, Mrs. Sharon Chester, Rev. Roslyn Watts, Mr. James Pinkett, Mr. William Jarmon, Rev. Keith Cornish
Bottom from left: Dr. Barbara Woolford, Mrs. Linda Henry, Mr. Tyrus Farrow (Consultant), Minister Arlinda Cornish-Barnes
Board of Directors
- Rev. Kieth Cornish: President
- Dr. Barbara Woolford: Vice President
- Mr. James Pinkett: Treasurer
- Mrs. Linda Henry: Secretary
- Rev. Roslyn Watts: Assistant Secretary
- Minister Arlinda Cornish-Barnes: Chaplain
- Mr. Tyrus Farrow: Consultant/Project Manager
- Mrs. Marion Fisher: Board Member
- Mr. William Jarmon: Board Member
- Mrs. Sharon Chester: Board Member
