A centennial birthday deserves a celebration, whether you’re a person or a structure. Burney Elementary, located at 901 E. Evers St., will get its celebration this month.
Principal Brooke Quinlan said the community is welcome to attend the event, held at the school on Thursday, August 24, that will include speakers who are former alumni and staff, a tour of the original structure with student historians sharing facts about the building, a walking museum featuring photos of the school’s rich history and refreshments.
“We’re trying to get the word out to invite the community to the event,” said Quinlan.
Photo of Esther Dorothy Burney, courtesy of East Hillsborough Historical Society.
The two-story red-brick school, constructed in 1923, was named after Esther Dorothy Burney, who, with her husband Professor E.G. Burney, were two of Plant City’s earliest teachers. They taught in a one-room schoolhouse opened in 1885. In their lifetime, they witnessed Plant City schools grow from its 1885 enrollment of approximately 20 students to its 1931 enrollment of almost 2,000 students.
Through the years, the building has served in a number of capacities. It was an elementary school (serving grades one through six), a sixth-grade center, a “strawberry school” (that would close during strawberry harvesting season so children of farmers could help their families in the fields), the temporary location of Tomlin Junior High School and an exceptional education and alternative education center.
The school received much-needed facelifts in the last several decades. In 2002, the front windows were replaced and new offices constructed. A decade later a contractor replaced aging mortar and cement around the bricks and new structures were added to the site. Its name was changed to Esther D. Burney Elementary.
This year, a sprinkler system was installed and the building repainted.
Assistant Principal Megan Braglin has rich history with the school. She was a student at the school when it was a sixth-grade center. Her mother, Dr. Mary Knox, was the guidance counselor. Her father, David Knox, was a sixth-grade teacher.
“I went to Bryan Elementary but used to ride the bus here after school and the lunch ladies would share their leftovers and they used to cook from scratch,” said Braglin. “I remember the blondies they used to make and in the fall they’d make and sell homemade sweet potato pies.”
Fast forward to this school year. Quinlan expects student enrollment will be between 350 and 370 students. She also plans on bringing back the Halloween Carnival as part of its 100th anniversary celebration.
If Esther Burney were alive, would she be pleased to see her school still educating students? Quinlan thinks so.
“Our core of what we are is exactly what Esther D. Burney wanted, which was her vision to make sure every child is educated for the sake of the community,” she said.
For more information about Burney Elementary visit hillsboroughschools.org/burney.