Following a ten-year effort to create an after-school gathering place for local teenagers, residents of Durham's West End neighborhood and members of the Duke community dedicated a new recreation center Saturday before a gathering of about 75 people.
"It's an extension of our after-school tutorial program," said Ronnie McKoy, director of the West End Community Center, adding that the facility will provide homework assistance, a computer lab, a gospel choir, tae kwon-do and dance classes. "It's a safe haven to provide a positive alternative to kids," he said.
The new facility was purchased with a $165,000 grant from the Duke Endowment, the Charlotte-based foundation established by James B. Duke in 1924. Although separate from the Duke Endowment, the University did help in other ways, securing the funding and contributing about $20,000 to help renovate the center and to add computers to its rooms.
"This is an expansion of our Neighborhood Partnership Initiative," said Michael Palmer, director of community affairs for the University. "We work with the community to identify quality of life issues, and then use Duke insight to help solve problems."
The new Juanita McNeil and Joseph Alston West End Community Center, located near campus on Kent Street, is an extension of the center's main building on Jackson Street.
Although it has been offering teen programming since June, the new building went unnamed until the ribbon-cutting ceremony dedicated it to two prominent community leaders.
"Miss McNeil had a dream-she wanted to serve the people in this community," said Beverly Little, president of the center's board of directors. "If you are familiar with the West End, you know there have been some really dramatic changes in this community, and Juanita has been at the center of that."
Having lived in Durham most of her life, McNeil become upset over ten years ago about children's lack of places to go, and started a tutorial program for elementary school students in her home. The program eventually grew to become the West End Community Center on Jackson Street.
"I knew my neighborhood was in trouble," McNeil said. "We can sleep now because we know we cleaned up part of this neighborhood."
Alston has worked since 1981 in several Duke offices, including the Office of Community Affairs. Charged with developing service programs in four Durham neighborhoods, he said he took a special interest in the creation of the new teen center.
"What this is all about is focusing on the children in the community," said Alston. "Our hope is that the programming, like the new computer lab, will help the kids keep coming back. We're going to raise the graduation rates, and we're going to cut the crime rates."
The residents of Brown Dormitory, who have been volunteering as tutors in the teen center this semester, are also working toward those goals. Approximately 40 students have been volunteering each week as part of a larger effort to get East Campus residents involved in community service.
Although the program is just in its first year, Little said that Duke students have always been involved in the West End.
Among many other community leaders present, Fredrick Davis, pastor of the First Calvary Baptist Church, expressed optimism about the future of the neighborhood.
"We have the Community Center on Jackson Street as the apex, we have the wonderful new teen center, and come next year we will have a new family and recreation center on Line Street," he said. "We envision to have this whole area formed into a triangle."
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