Atlanta Public Schools celebrated a major moment in the massive renovation project to reopen the childhood school attended by Martin Luther King Jr.

The district on Friday held a “topping out” ceremony, a tradition in the construction industry that takes place when the highest beam of a building is put in place.

APS is undertaking a $52 million renovation of the David T. Howard Building in the Old Fourth Ward.

The former school has been shuttered for decades, but the district plans to reopen it in the fall of 2020 as a middle school.

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Uta Thomas picks up her son, Jax, during a public hearing in Atlanta on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. She implored the school board not to close Dunbar Elementary. 
"You would centralize education to decentralized families," she said. "You would break apart a community hub." (Abbey Cutrer / AJC)

Credit: abbey.cutrer@ajc.com

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Passengers wait at a Delta check-in counter at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. It was the first day the Federal Aviation Administration cut flight capacity at airports during the government shutdown. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com