Hickman Mills School District celebrated two of its most dedicated advocates at a renaming ceremony that unveiled new signage and names for two schools that will honor the legacies of civil rights icon Alvin Brooks and community champion John Sharp.
Starting next year, Hickman Mills’ South Middle School will be known as Alvin Brooks Middle School, and the Ervin Early Learning Center will be the John Sharp Early Education Center. Hickman Mills Superintendent Yaw Obeng praised Brooks and Sharp at the late-March renaming ceremony that brought together legislators, school officials, and community members.
Hickman Mills’ school board voted unanimously to rename two schools (left to right): School Board President Irene Kendrick, John Sharp, Alvin Brooks, Superintendent Yaw Obeng.
“It’s a historic moment,” said Obeng. “These two gentlemen have so much history to add to this moment.”
Brooks, who has served multiple terms on the Hickman Mills School Board and turns 93 this year, received a standing ovation when his school sign was unveiled.
“I’m honored and certainly humbled,” Brooks said. “I’m glad that you didn’t do this posthumously because now you folks know that Alvin Brooks is looking down upon you and smiling.”
Brooks is a civil rights leader, educator, and former police officer who founded the AdHoc Group Against Crime and has served on the Kansas City Council and the National Drug Advisory Council. He expressed his gratitude to those in attendance and toasted his fellow honoree.
“I want to congratulate my friend for a long time, John Sharp, because you have certainly earned this honor,” said Brooks. “You’ve dedicated your life to this part of the city and education.”
Sharp — a former Hickman Mills board member, Missouri state representative, city council member, and current president of the South Kansas City Alliance — also thanked those gathered and the district for having the early education center named in his honor.
“We do things for the community, not to get recognized, but to do good work,” said Sharp. “It is still great to get recognized because it allows the opportunity to highlight some of the great things that are happening in our community.”
The school board voted unanimously to approve the renaming in December, with Brooks recusing himself from the vote. Hickman Mills School Board President Irene Kendrick praised both men as “living legends.”
“Their legacy will live on for generations to come, and from this day forward, these schools will bear the names of two individuals who have shaped the district and the community in profound ways,” Kendrick said.
Sharp, who has lived just blocks from the campus for 58 years, explained why the early education center naming held special significance for him.
“I realized [long ago] how important it is to prepare students to be successful in school even before they start kindergarten,” Sharp said. “When we can prepare them beforehand, they can be so much more successful throughout their academic career, and it’s a lot cheaper than trying to catch students up when they’re in their later grades.”
Sharp and his family sponsor scholarships through the Hickman Mills Educational Foundation, including two in his name and one in memory of his late stepdaughter. He recently toured the early learning center and praised its approach.
“The class sizes are very small,” said Sharp. “All the kids I saw in there looked like they were having a great time while they were also learning,” Sharp said.
For Superintendent Obeng, the naming recognizes more than just two individuals’ service.
“We were so excited to have two living legends, who have weathered the storms, to continue advocating for the future we want,” said Obeng. “Their contributions over the years gave us an elegant solution in the naming [of these schools], and how we could recognize the past but capture the spirit of overcoming adversity for the future.”
