Chadwick Boseman Honored By His Old School District
April 3, 2025
Chadwick Boseman’s former school district honored the late actor by unveiling a bust and renaming its fine arts center in his name.
Chadwick Boseman’s family and friends were in attendance to see the late actor honored by his old school district in Anderson County, South Carolina.
On March 28, Anderson School District 5 held a dedication ceremony unveiling a bust of Boseman and officially renaming the Southwood Academy of the Arts Fine Arts Center as the Chadwick Boseman Fine Arts Center, Fox Carolina reports. Boseman’s parents attended the ceremony alongside James Brown’s daughter, honoring the connection between the late actor and the music legend he portrayed in the 2014 biopic Get On Up.
Together, they unveiled a bust of Boseman at the center.
Chadwick Boseman’s parents arrive at the Anderson fine arts center now named in his honor.
They’re greeted by friends & family, including James Brown’s daughter.
She helped the family unveil a bust of the Black Panther star who also portrayed Brown in 2014 @foxcarolinanews pic.twitter.com/A5EnWYROuU
— Justin Dougherty (@DoughertyJC) March 28, 2025
The dedication comes a year after the Board of Trustees passed a resolution in March 2024 to rename the fine arts center. Boseman was a former district student, attending McCants Middle School before graduating from T.L. Hanna High School in 1995.
“We wanted to ensure that his legacy is not forgotten,” Harold Kay, Anderson School District Five Board of Trustees Chairman, told Greenville Online. “This renaming inspires young people. It doesn’t matter where you come from or what your background is. If you apply yourself, you can accomplish great things.”
The Black Panther star passed away in 2020 following a four-year battle with colon cancer. The school district collaborated closely with Boseman’s family throughout the process to ensure his legacy was honored in a way that reflected their wishes. The bust was inspired by a photo provided by Boseman’s family, which portrays him as he appeared while receiving his honorary doctorate from Howard University in 2018.
Boseman earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in directing from Howard University in 2000. In 2018, he returned to his alma mater to receive an honorary doctorate. Three years later, in 2021, Howard University announced that its newly re-established College of Fine Arts would be named the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts in his honor.
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