Student mural of late Fayette ‘servant superintendent’ unveiled at Central Office

As videos and words of the late Fayette County Public Schools Superintendent Emmanuel “Manny” Caulk filled Central Office Thursday, a mural created by Bryan Station High School students honoring Caulk was unveiled to the public.

The mural, which depicts Caulk interacting with students, has been installed in the stairwell of the John D. Price Administration Building.

Caulk died in December 2020 after a short illness while he was superintendent. He was hired in 2015.

Bryan Station High School students worked on the mural for about three years.

Joshua Hocker, who graduated last spring, said students came up with the image for the mural by looking back on Caulk’s photos. They did “a memory recall mural,” he said. They also captured him looking to the future of Fayette County Schools.

Student Dorothy George, who worked on the mural, said when she participated in a science fair in seventh grade, Caulk encouraged her to go into biomedical sciences in college. She is now a high school senior.

“I see myself as your servant superintendent,” Caulk said in a tribute video. He said he believed in service and it took an entire community to ensure student success.

“We remember you, partner,” the tribute video said, referring to Caulk’s belief that families, students and the entire school community were his partners.

Former school board members, Caulk’s wife Christol Caulk and his children were among a large crowd at the ceremony.

“He was a servant leader that encouraged the next generation to invest in themselves through the value of hard work and education,” Christol Caulk said.

School board member Amanda Ferguson said she was on the board that hired Caulk in 2015 when the district was facing many challenges and had conducted a nationwide search to face the issues head on.

With Caulk, “we just knew we had found the right fit,” she said. She said his passion for putting students first was evident but so was his passion for staff and building relationships with families and community members.

“If you ever heard him speak, you know he always put our babies first. He had no time for politics, drama or grown up foolery,” said parent Penny Christian. “Today, FCPS unveiled a mural created by students at Bryan Station High School, inspired by the Manny they knew. The Manny who saw them, who fought for them.“