 things would suddenly change. The county school board voted to stop funding schools and was supported by other segregationist states in the South. However, Prince Edward was reportedly the only county across the states to officially take such drastic measures. While white students were allowed to attend private schools, black students were left out. For five years, the schools remained closed, and the NAACP helped rally attention to the situation. President John F. Kennedy mentioned the Prince Edwards matter in an address to Congress in 1963.