{"id":1821,"date":"2026-06-19T13:06:19","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T13:06:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1821"},"modified":"2026-06-19T13:06:19","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T13:06:19","slug":"harding-seniors-surprised-with-free-suits-dresses-for-graduation-thanks-to-cms-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1821","title":{"rendered":"Harding seniors surprised with free suits, dresses for graduation, thanks to CMS leader"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"summary\">AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.charlotteobserver.com\/news\/nation-world\/national\/article280707640.html\">Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Harding High senior Jacob Banks thought that he was walking to the school\u2019s gym to pick up his cap and gown for graduation a couple of weeks ago.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1819\">NC Senate leader Berger, Speaker Hall now in final talks about overdue state budget<\/a><\/p>\n<p>But Banks \u2014 and all 201 of Harding\u2019s seniors \u2014 were in for a big surprise.<\/p>\n<p>Interim principal Ericia Turner, normally executive athletic director for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, had raised more than $45,000 and <a href=\"https:\/\/dwilliamssuits.net\/\" rel=\"Follow\" target=\"_blank\">hired a private tailor<\/a> to make suits for the entire senior class. Female students had a choice between dresses or pantsuits. The students also got shirts, ties and shoes.<\/p>\n<p>Harding, which has about 1,350 students, is a Title 1 school, meaning at least 75 percent of the students are on free and reduced lunch programs.<\/p>\n<p>The students said Turner\u2019s efforts really meant a lot.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was blessed. I was happy for it, man,\u201d said Banks, 18, who played football, baseball and wrestled in the 2025-26 school year. \u201cMe and my mom were about to go and get a suit. So I was just blessed to get that, and they fit perfectly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Banks said the new attire made the school\u2019s graduation at the Truliant Amphitheater even more special.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat made us look good on graduation,\u201d Banks said. \u201cA lot of the kids, it was their first time getting a suit, you know. So it meant a lot. It made us a lot more comfortable with graduating. It made us feel more, you know, just more outgoing, more vibrant.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt made us feel good. It made us feel smooth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In late February, Turner was temporarily moved to Harding, starting a five-month assignment, and the very first day she was on campus, she had a vision.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wanted every senior to have a black suit for graduation,\u201d Turner said. \u201cI mean, everybody needs a suit, for an internship, a job interview, a college presentation. And me being a leader, I wanted to have an impact on the lives of these kids. I thought to myself, \u2018I\u2019m only here for a few months, and what impact can I have?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1817\">Carolina Panthers mailbag: How does Jimmy Horn fit into wide receiver puzzle?<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The only problem with her dream?<\/p>\n<p>How to pay for it.<\/p>\n<p>Suits aren\u2019t cheap, and Turner needed dozens \u2014 and dozens \u2014 of suits. .<\/p>\n<p>Having run athletics in CMS for several years, Turner had dealt with many corporate sponsors and reached out to them. The Carolina Panthers were the first to make a donation, but more followed, including donations from Honeywell and some employees in the CMS transportation department. And the folks at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shinelikejane.org\/\" rel=\"Follow\" target=\"_blank\">Jane\u2019s Fund<\/a> \u2014 who help families with children battling cancer and students who attend underfunded schools \u2014 brought Turner\u2019s vision across the finish line with one last check.<\/p>\n<p>Turner said she was so excited to see her dream come true \u2014 and to see the kids get their outfits and try them on.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey didn\u2019t know me, and they didn\u2019t know about this until they picked up the suits,\u201d Turner said. \u201cA lot of them thanked me, and parents and grandparents came to school to pick them up. It was a group effort. Teachers had to hem pants to make sure they fit. I didn\u2019t realize that a lot of teachers could sew, but we had three or four teachers making sure that those suits fit. I\u2019m just super grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Harding\u2019s graduation was in the morning on Friday, June 12.<\/p>\n<p>The kids came in with their new suits and dresses \u2014 and there were plenty of smiles. Harding athletic director Jermaine Walker happily spent a lot of time teaching some of the Rams\u2019 young men how to tie a tie during rehearsal. Watching the students at graduation, Walker said he felt a sense of pride.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen (Turner) told me the vision, I didn\u2019t see it at first,\u201d Walker said. \u201cBut I saw it when the suit guy came to set up. They started delivering the suits the Monday before graduation. You could see it in the kids\u2019 eyes, like this (graduation) was going to be a day to remember. And it kind of pivoted a little bit to a career thing, like you can have a suit for your first interview. And, man, the kids bought into it. It was a really great thing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was hot on graduation day. Walker and other Harding officials were offering to hold the kids\u2019 jackets, since they were putting their robes over their new shirts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey wouldn\u2019t let me take that jacket off of them,\u201d Walker said. \u201cThey wanted to show them off. It was something to remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=1815\">Charlotte region transportation board maintains decision to kill I-77 toll support<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"summary gray\">This story was originally published <span class=\"inline-block\">June 19, 2026 at 6:15 AM<span>.<\/span><\/span><!-- --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Harding\u2019s 201 seniors received free tailored suits, dresses or pantsuits for graduation after interim principal Ericia Turner raised $45,000 with community sponsors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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