President Signs into Law Spanberger Legislation to Provide $200,000 for Development of Historic Carver Center in Culpeper County into Rural Community Education Campus

This Funding will Support the Roof Replacement Necessary to Continue the Development of a Cultural, Agricultural, & Vocational Education Campus

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden today signed into law U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger’s legislation to provide $200,000 for the roof replacement of the Carver Center, previously George Washington Carver Regional High School, in Culpeper County. 

The roof replacement is integral in the continued development of the Carver Center into a rural community education campus.

The funding for Culpeper County — which Spanberger successfully secured as part of a House and Senate-passed fiscal year (FY) 2022 appropriations package — will support the addition of a food processing center within the campus that includes a commercial kitchen for educational use and small business operations, providing the support necessary to assist with the financial sustainability of small and medium-sized local farms and food businesses.

Additionally, this funding will allow the Carver Center to continue serving the community in addressing unemployment and poverty, reducing the loss of farmland, and improving the local economy.

“The Carver Center is already serving the Culpeper community. And now that the President has signed this legislation into law, I am proud to have worked directly with Culpeper leaders to deliver new funding for the Carver Center to support its incredible mission,” said Spanberger. “Since coming to Congress, I have been focused on bringing federal resources home to Central Virginia’s communities — like this funding. I am encouraged that the $200,000 allocated to this project will now be going straight to Culpeper, and I want to thank Culpeper County’s local officials for their engagement with my office and their commitment to their neighbors.”

“On behalf of the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors I wish to share my gratitude for the Community Project Funding secured for the Carver Center,” said Gary Deal, Chairman, Culpeper County Board of Supervisors. “These funds will directly contribute to the Carver Center’s revitalization as a cultural, agricultural, and vocational education campus. As a lifelong resident of Culpeper, I am very proud of the Carver initiative, and the benefit and camaraderie it brings to the region. The Carver Center holds great potential and continues to gain momentum in direct response to the tireless effort put forward by the George Washington Carver Regional High School Alumni Association, 4-County Museum, George Washington Carver Agricultural Research Center, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Culpeper County staff, and the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors. The story of the Carver Center continues to be written by the many organizations and individuals working in collaboration for the preservation of this important landmark.”

“The George Washington Carver Regional High School Alumni Association appreciates all efforts to restore, maintain, and enhance our historical facility,” saidReverend Frank D. Lewis Sr., Chairman, George Washington Carver Regional High School Alumni Association, Inc. “As the building is re-purposed and new programs and activities are housed, it is important that physical updates are made to ensure its longevity. Our Carver 4 County Museum, housed in the school’s former library, steadily receives visitors for tours and has gained much attention and acclaim in the surrounding communities for its outstanding exhibits and programs. The roof project will also provide an opportunity to achieve one of the Association’s major goals, the restoration of the school’s original name to the building.”

The Carver Center operated as the regional high school for African American students until 1968 and continues to serve the Culpeper community and surrounding communities by housing vocational training, agricultural education programs, and a museum dedicated to educating the public on the inequities of segregation.

BACKGROUND

This year, the U.S. House of Representatives implemented a new effort as part of its annual appropriations process, which allowed for specific Community Project Funding requests — like the Carver Center roof replacement project. Spanberger worked directly with community leaders in all 10 counties of the Seventh District to gather community-focused requests for her submissions. Click here for a full list of her submissions.

The Community Project Funding process was created to ensure that Members of Congress, in concert with the communities they represent, may submit direct applications for federal funding to support locally planned projects as part of the yearly appropriations process.

To be eligible, projects must be sponsored by local or state government entities or non-profit organizations and must be projects that would otherwise meet the qualifications to apply for federal grant funding. The purpose of Community Project Funding is to ensure direct, local engagement as part of the federal appropriations process. In line with this goal, funding applications must demonstrate significant local support for the projects. 

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