The former Dillard Junior High, shuttered in 2002, sat empty for more than two decades before DreamKey Partners turned its dusty corridors into a beacon of hope for older adults.
Opened as the Caswell County Training School in 1950, the brick campus was the first 11‑grade facility for Black students in the county; after desegregation it was renamed in honor of principal Nicholas Dillard.
Walker, the developer's chief, said the project leveraged HUD’s Section 202 program and historic tax credits, allowing the state and federal funds to cover restoration costs while keeping rents capped at 50% of the area median income.
Henderson recalled her school bus rides and the smell of chalk dust, and said her sister had urged her to move home because there were no suitable places for seniors in Yanceyville.
Yet the apartments are already booked, with a waiting list that outstrips the 53‑unit capacity; state officials say the initiative could spur similar conversions to ease the 215,000‑unit shortage of affordable housing for low‑income seniors.