John H. Dickerson Community Center

John H. Dickerson Community Center

308 South Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard

Campbell Street Elementary began as Daytona Colored School in 1884, which served students of all ages. From 1929 to 1931 Daytona Colored School was known as the Second Street Elementary School. The school's name changed again to Campbell Elementary in 1931 to honor car-racing legend Malcolm Campbell.

In 1946 a fire gutted most of the Campbell Street High School. Their new building (now John H. Dickerson Community Center) was completed in 1948. When Campbell Street High School moved to Keech Street for upgraded facilities in 1962, Campbell Elementary moved into the vacated high school building (now John H. Dickerson Community Center).

In 1969, Campbell Street Elementary School closed to comply with court-ordered desegregation and the building remained vacant until 1975, when former Campbell Street Elementary principal John H. Dickerson, Sr., convinced the city to purchase the property and renovate the building for use as a community center.

The building that Dickerson had been instrumental in saving was renamed in his honor when he retired, after 42 years as a school administrator. John H. Dickerson’s extensive community service included membership on several boards and councils, co-chairman of the Daytona Beach Development Project, president of the Halifax Area Council on Human Relations and chairman of the Campbell Street Community Improvement Association. The gym was named after Ralph Robinson in 2002, one of the three Black men who worked for the school. Robinson was a school custodian, mentor, youth basketball coach, community activist and a lifelong National Association for the Advancement of Colored People member.

Since opening, the Dickerson Center has become a vibrant neighborhood gathering space, community hub, and a vital place for national politics. In 2004, former President Barack Obama visited during his campaign for the U.S. Senate, and in 2016, Hillary Clinton visited during her campaign for U.S. President. The complex remains an important community hub with 35,000 annual users.

The city invested nearly $3 million in 2023 to improve the community center and recreation complex.

Timeline

1884 - Daytona Colored School & Daytona High School Formed

1931 - Daytona Colored School renamed Campbell Elementary School

1941 - Daytona High School renamed Campbell High School

1962 - Campbell High School Moves to Larger Facility

1962 - Campbell Elementary School Moves to this site

1969 - Campbell Elementary Closed Due to Desegregation

1975 - Reopened as John H. Dickerson Community Center