Beauty P. Baldwin was one of the first black teachers at Central Gwinnett High School. Later she served as the state’s first black female school superintendent, hired to oversee Buford City Schools in 1984. She also helped found Hopewell Christian Academy and the Gwinnett’s charter school for the arts, North Metro Academy of Performing Arts.
But Gwinnett County Commission Chair Charlotte Nash said it was Baldwin’s contributions to elections that led the county to name the newly renovated Voter Registrations and Elections office at 455 Grayson Highway in Lawrenceville after her.
“Since joining the board in 1997, Beauty has served multiple terms as chairman, vice chairman and member,” Nash said. “Beauty is known for her dedication to democracy and respected for her knowledge about the democratic process. She has helped bring about improvements in the voting process to make it easier for people to register and to vote.”
“When I was asked to be on the Elections board, I thought to myself ‘this will be a great way to serve my community,” Baldwin said. “These 23 years on the board have been so rewarding and I’m grateful to have been given this opportunity. I hope that young girls who think they can’t make a difference know that they can inspire positive change just by having a willingness to serve.”
The $1.08 million renovation includes a registration area, a queue and poll worker area, voting area, and area designated for news media to stage equipment. A new processing room doubles as a multi-purpose room that can be closed off by glass partitions.
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