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Meeting Date:
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11/23/2020 - 5:00 PM
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Category:
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Old Business & Action Items
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Type:
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Action
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Subject:
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Superintendent’s Recommendation on the Renaming of T.C. Williams High School and Matthew Maury Elementary School--30 mins.
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ACPS 2025 Strategic Plan Goal:
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Goal 1: Systemic Alignment ACPS will build a culture of continuous improvement and design equitable systems for school and instructional improvement. Goal 2: Instructional Excellence ACPS will ensure that all students have access to and engagement with high-quality instruction. Goal 5: Family and Community Engagement ACPS will ensure that all families and community members feel welcomed, respected, and valued.
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Funding Source or Fiscal Impact (where applicable)
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File Attachment:
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Agenda Item Summary:
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On Aug. 27, 2020, the Alexandria School Board charged the superintendent with establishing a robust community engagement process to consider a name change for T.C. Williams High followed by the community petition that was sent to the School Board in June 2020.On Thursday, Sept. 18, 2020, the School Board voted to consider renaming Matthew Maury Elementary School. The joint process, launched in September 2020, for considering both name changes is known as The Identity Project.
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Background:
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Many ACPS schools were named during a time in our city and in our country when vastly different attitudes and beliefs guided our decisions. In 2020, a spotlight has shone on the many inequities in today’s society and a new determination to right the wrongs of history has swept the nation. To that end, the School Board answered a call to look again at the morality of naming our city’s only high school after Thomas Chambliss Williams, a staunch segregationist whose views could not have been more inconsistent with the vibrant, diverse and inclusive place we know today. As that process began, questions were raised about the name of Matthew Maury Elementary School. Was it right to immortalize a commander of the Confederate Navy even though he was also a celebrated oceanographer and astronomer? And so began The Identity Project, a wide-reaching community conversation that allowed for all voices to be heard as we look toward a more equitable future in Alexandria.
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Recommendation:
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The Superintendent recommends the School Board approve the renaming of T.C. Williams High School and Matthew Maury Elementary School; empower the Superintendent to seek the community's input and nominations in accordance with Regulation FF-R; and develop naming recommendations for Board approval in spring 2021. The new names would become effective at the start of the 2021-22 School Year.
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Approvals:
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Recommended By:
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Signed By:
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Final-Clerk of the Board - Proxy
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Vote Results:
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| Original Motion | | Member Meagan L. Alderton Moved, Member Jacinta Greene seconded to approve the Original motion 'The Superintendent recommends the School Board approve the renaming of T.C. Williams High School and Matthew Maury Elementary School; empower the Superintendent to seek the community''s input and nominations in accordance with Regulation FF-R; and develop naming recommendations for Board approval in spring 2021. The new names would become effective at the start of the 2021-22 School Year.'. Upon a Roll-Call Vote being taken, the vote was: Aye: 9 Nay: 0. | | The motion Carried 9 - 0 | | | | | Ramee A. Gentry | Yes | | Margaret Lorber | Yes | | Cindy Anderson | Yes | | Veronica R. Nolan | Yes | | Meagan L. Alderton | Yes | | Christopher A. Suarez | Yes | | Jacinta Greene | Yes | | Dr. Michelle Rief | Yes | | Heather Thornton | Yes | |
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