Student Leadership Johns Creek Documentaries Will Showcase Early 2022

JOHNS CREEK, GA — Four student-produced documentaries will be showcased in January and February. They will cover the importance of why it’s important to preserve historical cemeteries such as Macedonia Cemetery.

The upcoming events, one Jan. 27 at Johns Creek High School and the other Feb. 18 on Mercer’s Cecil B. Day Campus, 2930 Flowers Road South, in Atlanta will showcase the student films. They will cover topics such as the history of Macedonia Cemetery, the relationships between those who lived in the Johns Creek area and the importance of historical research, according to the release.

Four groups of students in the 2023 Student Leadership Johns Creek cohort representing three local high schools conducted oral history interviews and archival research to produce these documentaries. The students come from Johns Creek High, Northview High School and Chattahoochee High School.

Seniors Anais Long and Stella Braune of Centennial High School oversee filming and production of the documentaries, with the assistance of AV teacher Christopher Buechner, a Mercer Tift College of Education alumnus.

“The people we have been able to meet during the process are truly awe inspiring,” said Brady Carnesale, a sophomore at Johns Creek High School, in the release. “Not only have I been able to speak with these amazing people, their wisdom and expertise make me want to do whatever I can to make a difference.”

“Growing up in a new city such as Johns Creek often makes us forget what the place we live in was like before we lived here,” said Shruthi Balachander, a junior at Northview High School.

“An opportunity to work on a project involving the Macedonia Cemetery was an enlightening experience filled with curiosity and excitement, and we uncovered the unknown past and made connections to its future,” Balachander said. “Working on such a unique project shows you moments of history you could never imagine that exist in places we now simply drive by. It was truly gratifying to be able to carry and tell the stories of those who lived such strenuous lives. With hope for the future and appreciation for the past, Student Leadership Johns Creek is proud to have this privilege.”

Student Leadership Johns Creek, in partnership with Mercer University’s Tift College of Education and the Johns Creek Historical Society, received a $2,500 Georgia Humanities grant in May to fund high school student research on the history and preservation of the Macedonia African Methodist Church Cemetery in north Fulton County.

Katherine Perrotta, assistant professor of middle grades and secondary education, serves as project director and principal investigator on the grant project, titled “They Were Here: Preservation and Commemoration of the Macedonia African Methodist Church Cemetery of Johns Creek.”

Applications for the next Student Leadership Johns Creek class are available now through January 31, 2021, at each school’s counselor office or on-line at www.studentleadershipjohnscreek.com.