Wakefield elementary, middle and high schools are marking 25 years of education, growth and community impact, celebrating a period of shaping students and fostering connections beyond the classroom. Since its opening in 2000, Wakefield schools have played a vital role in the Wake Forest and North Raleigh communities, preparing generations of students while benefiting from the support of local families, businesses and organizations. As Wakefield employees commemorate how far the community has come, Wakefield’s celebration jubilee commemorates the school’s lasting influence and the strong relationships between education and the Wakefield community. 

Wakefield 25-Year Anniversary Overview 

What once started as a small cluster of trailers has grown into a prosperous community of three schools with large brick buildings. Wakefield High School was the first mark of what would become a place of memories. Wakefield Middle School followed the opening of the high school in 2000, where it started as just a sixth-grade class located in the Wakefield Elementary School building. Previously, the buildings had hosted Sanderson High School. 

To some, the mark of a 25-year anniversary celebration is nothing out of the ordinary, but to Wakefield, this celebration is one most bittersweet. Stephanie Johnson has been teaching fourth grade at Wakefield Middle since 2003. Since her start, Johnson has been passionate about a career in education. Johnson considers being part of a broad group of like-minded teachers passionate about education to be the most important aspect of her life.

“You’re part of something bigger than you are,” Johnson said. 

To be involved in an educational community like Wakefield creates a larger sense of home. Even for teachers living in areas far away from the schools, like Johnson, Wakefield’s strong foundations in education and support are appealing.

“I actually live quite far from [Wakefield Middle], a 45-minute drive,” Johnson said. “I’ve continued to stay here all these years just because we built such an amazing place to work.”

A Legacy of Dedication

The halls of Wakefield High School have seen it all. With teachers coming and going, there are only so many left that have been working since its opening. Anthony Calabria is one of those few. As the men’s and women’s varsity soccer coach and teacher of English IV, 20th Century Classics and Speech I, Calabria is no stranger to Wakefield High School.

“When they were building the school, I drove out here, and there was a little trailer,” Calabria said. “I just applied for the job and got it.”

The Wakefield High School known today is not the same as when it started. Wakefield High School started out as just a few trailers with only three grades: freshman, sophomore and junior. Now, Wakefield is a prosperous school, with up to 500 students in each grade, multiple awards and impeccable academics and athletics. 

“When I first started here in the beginning, there was no third floor, no seniors, and it was only three classes – freshman through juniors,” Calabria said. “It was tiny and we were terrible at everything. But it was a fun, close-knit group.”

Wakefield’s development can be seen through more than just physical expansion; the development of athletic prowess is a clear marker of the school’s growth. This has been most recently demonstrated by the women’s varsity cheer team, who won nationals this Spring, and the men’s varsity soccer team, who won this year’s state championship.

“There’s nothing more memorable than winning the state championship; That will forever be one of the best memories I’ve ever had as a coach and as a teacher,” Calabria said. “It’s been fun watching the school become more competitive in sports.”

Building a Community

Wakefield spent its 25 years building a community in and around its schools. Many Wakefield students would remark on how interconnected the schools are, with Wakefield High students often helping Middle and Elementary students with their learning and extracurriculars. The Physical Education Pupil Instructor (PEPI) class at Wakefield High is a prime example. Taught by Danielle Blackburn, a Physical Education teacher at the high school since its opening, PEPI is an opportunity for Juniors and Seniors to teach Wakefield Elementary students about physical wellness and athletics.

“[The PEPI students] have a good time with the kids,” Blackburn said. “We’ve got a lot of kindergarteners, then we have some third-grade classes, and they love having my senior kids. It’s a good program here—the kids are good and the admin has always been supportive of us.”

Established in 2001, the PEPI class at Wakefield has come full circle. Caroline Robertson, a teacher at Wakefield Elementary and a Wakefield alumnus, remembers when she helped coach PEPI with Blackburn and remarks on her return to Wakefield.

“Upon returning to WES as a teacher, I was so happy to see that Coach Blackburn is still providing that opportunity for seniors,” Robertson said. “It’s been so cool to come back and work at the school where I was once a PEPI teacher and even have had the opportunity to teach some of my old teachers’ children.” 

Wakefield High students also help at the middle school through the Drama Club and Science Olympiad team, providing after-school assistance in directing and coaching. But programs like these are not just internal affairs; extracurriculars like Science Olympiad have allowed students to interact with the Wakefield and North Carolina communities through subjects they love. Wakefield Middle science teacher Samantha Barlow has coached Science Olympiad there for years, and has found many opportunities to expand the program to give her students a chance to grow and explore the world.

“For the last several years, we have made it to the State Tournament, so the kids can go to NC State and compete against the best teams across the state,” Barlow said. “We’ve had the chance to compete with teams across the nation when we do online tournaments, which pushes us out of our comfort zones and makes us a better team.”

Just as the Wakefield schools depend on the surrounding community to support their students’ growth, the community also depends on the schools to provide opportunities for individuals and small businesses to expand, like at the Mistletoe Market, a yearly event hosted at Wakefield High in which vendors can sell their handmade products around the holidays. The neighborhoods of Wakefield were essentially developed around its schools, highlighting the significant influence these institutions have had on the local community.

“The students live in the community around the Wakefield schools, and the schools act as an anchor for the kids and their families,” Barlow said. “The schools are seen as a center and a place to go.”

Looking to the Future 

Looking ahead as Wakefield enters its next 25 years, the future holds a greater promise. Whether it’s Wakefield adapting to the rapidly changing world or the growing generations of students to come, Wakefield is ready for any challenge there is. Building off of the foundations built in the last 25 years, Wakefield hopes to take its students and teachers even further.

“The fact that so many teachers, coaches and staff are still at Wakefield years later just goes to show how much people truly enjoy working in this community of students, families and educators,” Robertson said.

Wakefield teachers, especially, hope the lessons and hard work they have put into Wakefield education will stick with them. As the page turns to the next chapter, marking a memorable continuation of Wakefield’s legacy, Robertson notes that the future for her is about watching the children she taught cross the state to Wakefield High School.

“To my students, past, present and future: I am so incredibly proud of the people you have and will become,” Robertson said. “You have worked so hard to get where you are today.”  

Whatever the future holds, it is clear that Wakefield has established itself as a keystone institution for its students, staff, and community over the past quarter century. 

“I’ve witnessed the strength of the community and how it comes together through times like COVID, how it comes together through times of accomplishments with students and sports,” Calabria said. “I think as we progress through the years, it’s going to continually get stronger and stronger as we establish ourselves, because this whole community has only been here for 25 years. I’m glad I was part of it. That’s why I never left.”