The Roberts School was constructed in the late 1940s on the site of the original location of the Acworth Rosenwald School before it was dismantled and rebuilt as a community center on Cherokee Street. The Roberts School served as a segregated school for Acworth’s Black community until 1968 when integration moved students to Acworth Elementary and Awtrey Middle Schools. Today, the Roberts School serves as a community center allowing rentals of the cafeteria space for family functions and meeting spaces for city non-profit groups. It’s also the location of Acworth Parks, Recreation and Community Resource Departments’ after-school program, the Acworth Achievers and the Acworth Cultural Arts Center’s Rena Henton Theatre.
The newly unveiled black box theater was named after beloved Acworth resident, Rena Henton, who lived in her home on Cherokee Street for over 70 years before it was tragically destroyed by fire in 1988. Remembered as a familiar and caring presence to so many in the community, her story, resilience, and lasting impact on the quality of life in Acworth will be remembered for generations to come. This building serves as an important reminder of Acworth’s historically Black community and the families that were raised in the churches and schools of Acworth’s Parkside District.