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Miss Odeal Pearcy is the daughter of two of Arlington’s earliest pioneers. She was born July 27, 1913, and she first lived on the Fielder Farm located on Park Row and Fielder Road. She later lived on a farm on Pleasant Ridge Road near Rush Creek. Then at her grandparent’s farm on South Davis from Mitchell Street to Park Row.

Pearcy attended Johnson Station School on Mayfield Road at Cooper Street, and later she attended South Side School and North Side School in Arlington. North Side was located on the present site of Kooken Educational Center.

Pearcy’s Arlington High School graduating Class of 1930 was the largest class to date with approximately 60 students. Pearcy attended North Texas Agricultural College, North Texas Teachers College and Abilene Christian College. She began her teaching career in 1942 as a first, second and third-grade teacher in Mambrino, about five miles south of Granbury in Hood County.

In the fall of 1943, Pearcy began teaching at Pantego School. She moved to Arlington’s Southside School in 1947, teaching second grade for four years and third grade for five years. At that time, C.E. Dunn was the principal and Ross Wimbish was the superintendent.

In 1956, Pearcy helped open the new Blanton Elementary as a third-grade teacher. She retired in 1977 after 35 years in education. Marshall Sherrod was the principal of Blanton for the 21 years Pearcy taught there, and he also retired the same year. James Martin was the superintendent at that time.

Pearcy Elementary was formally dedicated on November 19, 2000, and recently was converted to Pearcy STEM Academy.