Coosa County Training School moment in history
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
Yearbook photo of instructor Sheppard May Jr.
Special to the News
Submitted by Mamie M. Ellis
During Black History Month I want to share with you information about Mr. Sheppard May Jr, a vocational agribusiness instructor that arrived in Coosa County in 1946 from Alabama A&M University with an education vision for the students and community.
May was born May 2, 1916, in St. Stephens, Ala., and graduated from Koenton High School. He earned a B.S. Degree from Alabama A&M University in Huntsville and a Masters Degree from Tuskegee Institute. May was an instructor at Alabama A&M University for two years and came to Cottage Grove with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
During the day May taught the high school students woodworking, how to raise farm animals and working with farm equipment.
May also established night classes for the adult men in the community, teaching them to do home repairs and work on farm equipment. Mrs. Chlora King May shared that the favorite class requested by the men was building steps.
During the spring the men were honored at the completion of their classes with a certificate and a banquet with food prepared by their wives. Mr. May married Chlora King on May 26, 1958, and she moved to Coosa the next day, where she taught social studies and physical education.
The Mays lived in the teachers dormitory for two years and raised their son, Shawn, and daughter, Myrna, there until they purchased a home near the school.
Alabama A&M continued its relationship with its former instructor and sent its agricultural teachers to Cottage Grove to do their practice teaching under Mr. May.
A comparison of Mr. May and founder J. R. Savage can be made as both saw the importance of teaching agriculture and farm techniques to students and residents, and providing inspiration to all.
On December 28, 1997, Mr. May passed away, leaving the Coosa County Training School/J. D. Thompson High School with a legacy of training that has been passed down through the generations.
Mr. Sheppard May is standing second from the right of Mr. Essie Martin. In this adult night class, the students learn to repair farm equipment.
