Local News

Guilderland High School paints over rock in honor of dead student

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GUILDERLAND –Guilderland High School recently painted over a rock that had been painted purple in honor of 17-year-old Alyssa Gelfand, who died in a Hurst Road crash on May 28.

Administrators originally threatened to take away graduation rights if the involved students did not restore the rock to its original color – red – but backed off amid intense media coverage.

“We understand that students are grieving and for the time being, the rock will remain purple,” the school said in a June second statement.

Five to seven weeks later, with empty hallways and vacant lockers, school administrators made their move; painting the rock back to its original color.

The school also said in its June second remarks that the rock was originally painted in honor of a deceased school employee. But at the time, students said they had no idea: “Of course we didn’t know this prior and felt bad hearing about it,” said Danielle Jakob, then a senior at the school.

Alyssa Shearing, a rising sophomore at Guilderland High School School, admitted the presence of the original memorial but says she never thought the school would paint over Alyssa’s: “Having her tribute on our school grounds is like having a piece of her still with us. I know that they said they would repaint a red color over top of the purple but I just never thought they would actually have the audacity to paint over a memorial for a 17-year-old girl who lost her life in such a tragedy.”

Guilderland High School did not immediately respond to a comment request for this story.

To read the original story, including the district’s efforts to place a tarp over the memorial — CLICK HERE.

Guilderland isn’t the first area school district to paint over a student memorial. CLICK HERE to see how Shaker High School handled a similar situation.

Dylan Rossiter

Dylan is the Founder and Editor-at-Large of The Upstate Courier. In the past, he has been a beat reporter covering Section II Athletics, Siena College men's basketball, the Tri-City ValleyCats, and breaking news. In Dylan's current role, he oversees newsroom operations and long-term planning. Dylan is a native of Castleton-on-Hudson and a graduate of Maple Hill High School.

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