The Dozier School for Boys has been at the focus of horror stories of abuse and cruelty.
On Tuesday, the Florida Legislature is taking up measures that would provide compensation for the families of those boys. Lawmakers are trying to decide whether the state should help pay for proper funerals for the victims, and if so, how much they would cover.
Controversy has surrounded the Marianna reform school for decades, as many of the students who attended told stories of abuse and death.
Researchers from the University of South Florida were able to find the remains of 55 boys whose bodies were hastily buried around the school in unmarked graves.
So far, seven of those bodies have been positively identified. A few have even been buried again, like Thomas Varnadoe, who died at Dozier in 1934. Researchers found his remains, and his relatives held a service near their family plot.
"I think it's probably self-explanatory," family member Glen Varnadoe said. "It's been 81 years of not having closure, and having it in a deserving manner for him instead of the undeserving manner that he got it at the Dozier Reform School for Boys."
Varnadoe's family paid for the service.
After everything that has happened, state lawmakers will discuss helping the families with that expense, providing compensation for other victims who have already been identified.
The families could receive between $5,000 and $7,500 to help cover the cost. Tuesday marks the beginning of that discussion, and there's more to come.
Lawmakers are also talking about what to do with the artifacts they uncovered, as well as the site itself. Some are pushing to make it a memorial for the victims.