Sarah Smith Intermediate Building Officially Dedicated

Outgoing Atlanta School Superintendent Beverly Hall Thursday morning joined in the dedication of the Sarah Smith Elementary Intermediate campus' state-of-the art building, one of the crowning achievements of her administration. 

Buckhead school board member Nancy Meister also attended the dedication of the $14 million building, which opened in January 2010 at 4141 Wieuca Road in Buckhead.

"Excellence" was a frequent refrain from speakers at the dedication ceremony. Sarah Smith is consistently ranked among the top schools in the Atlanta metro area and Georgia.

School Principal Dr. Sidney Baker cited the school's growth to 1,075 students, including the for third through fifth graders and the original, at 370 Old Ivy Road for kindergarten through second grade.

Marion Smith, a grandson of the school's namesake, Sarah Rawson Smith, recalled that he had attended the dedication of the original Sarah Smith building. "In 1954, it was a state of the art complex," he said. Smith said he attended E. Rivers Elementary School in Buckhead.

He recalled that his grandmother, who died in her 30s, had an ambition to build her own school, which she never realized. "Thanks to the adminstrators, faculty and students for making my grandmother's dream come true," he said.

Other speakers included Bob Just, architect of the school's architectural firm, Cooper Carry;  parent Julie Salisbury, one of the founders of the school board monitoring organization Atlanta School Board: Step Up or Step Down; Betty Conley, who is retiring after 30 years as a fifth grade teacher at the school; and Stacey McGrath, chair of the school council. 

The Sarah Smith Fourth and Fifth-Grade Chorus performed, and fifth grade student Lili Hurt served as mistress of ceremonies.