About Our School
Cross Roads ISD is a 2-A school
district with approximately 600 students enrolled in three campuses
serving Pre-Kindergarten through grade twelve. Our Accountability
Rating is Academically Recognized. Cross Roads ISD’s ethnic composition
is 92.9% white, 5.3% Hispanic and 1.8% African American.
Cross Roads is a small rural
community where cattle production is the main industry. We are located
at the juncture of FM 59 and FM 3441 in southwest Henderson County. The
district covers 113.2 square miles. Cross Roads is located 12 miles
southwest of Athens and 9 miles south of Malakoff.
History of Cross Roads School
The name Cross Roads originated
when a brush arbor camp meeting of Baptist denomination was held. It
was given this name because the road from Athens to Wild Ferry and the
road from Malakoff to Palestine crossed at this point.
In 1908, Cross Roads had a little
one-room schoolhouse. The first business building that was known to
Cross Roads was a cotton gin. Later, other businesses located at Cross
Roads were groceries stores, a drugstore, a pea thrasher, blacksmith
shop, barber shop, and a post office.
During the late 1800’s and early
1900’s, most small communities had a local school to take care of the
educational needs of the children. Since most travel methods involved
travel by horseback, buggy, or on foot, and at best provided a slow
means of transportation, local schools were a practical solution. Many
of these schools only had classes for students through the seventh
grade. The number of students in each of these local schools varied
from a few to over fifty.
In the early 1900’s the state
superintendent began to press for high school education. At this time,
most schools only had seven grades. As a result of this push, many
small schools began to consider consolidation as to provide upper grade
levels of education. Eight of the local small schools that would
eventually consolidate to form the Cross Roads Consolidated Independent
School District were Lockland, Willow Springs, Turkey Creek, Rome,
Beck’s Chapel, Post Oak, Jackson’s Chapel and Thompson’s Mill.
In 1925, the school was a
four-room red brick building. A teacherage was also built. In 1928,
four rooms were added to this building. During the depression in 1935, a
gymnasium was built. The Works Progress Administration of President
Roosevelt provided funds for building the rock tower, fences, and
stadium.
Students of the community, from
grades one to eleven attended Cross Roads School. In 1939, the state
changed from eleven grades to twelve grades.
Cross Roads School continued to
serve students one through twelve until a fire on May 17, 1953,
destroyed the main building of the school. It was decided by the people
of Cross Roads that elementary and junior high classes would continue
to be held at the present location and the school would be partially
rebuilt. High school students would transfer to Athens, Cayuga, or
Malakoff. This arrangement would last until the late 1970’s.
In the early 1970’s, Cross Roads
added kindergarten. The school now served students from kindergarten
through eighth grade. High school students remained having to transfer
to Athens, Cayuga or Malakoff.
In 1978, Cross Roads added grades
nine and ten. Then in 1979, Cross Roads added the eleventh and twelfth
grades which were housed in what is now the junior high school. The
senior class of 1980 was the first class to graduate from Cross Roads
High School since the fire of 1953. The present high school was built
in 1987.
From a one room schoolhouse in
1908, to the present, Cross Roads serves students from pre-kindergarten
through twelfth grade. The school, as well as the community, continues
to grow.