The days of the true neighborhood school are nearly gone. But not at Thomasville Heights Elementary.
Everyone walks. There is no bus. That’s because 95% of the students live inside Forest Cove, the sprawling Section 8 housing development across the street. The staff often accompany the pre-K-fifth graders directly past armed drug deals and filth, straight to the front doors of their apartments. There are rarely police, unless the complex’s most recent murder, mold and vermin infestation or massive brawl catches the brief attention of media.
In many ways, Thomasville is the center of the Southeast Atlanta community – especially since the Boys & Girls Club closed. The other most prominent institutions? The federal prison, a landfill and the Starlight Drive in.