NCAA Scrutiny Helps Hasten Decline of Tradition-Rich Black Prep School: LAURINBURG, N.C. - The Laurinburg Institute, the oldest historically Black prep school in the country, is a shell of its former self these days. The tennis court has no net and is over-run with weeds. Behind it, a two-story dormitory sits forlornly, still unrepaired after an arsonist’s fire some years ago.Also boarded up is the school’s gymnasium, which has produced such NBA stars as Sam Jones, Charlie Scott and Charlie Davis. Although the gym was condemned in the late 1990s after moisture caused part of the roof to fall in, the school still maintains its prestige in prep hoops.
“We play where we can, at the public park courts or elsewhere,” says Laurinburg coach Napoleon Cooper. As such, it has placed more than 30 players on Division I teams in the past decade.
But a recent NCAA ruling is threatening to end that record. Last year, NCAA officials declared the school “not cleared” after a review of its academics and curriculum during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years. The designation means that Laurinburg graduates are not eligible for initial eligibility in intercollegiate athletics or for consideration for scholarships.
