Living in LoCo
What's in a School Name?
Erica Garman at 1:44 p.m., August 14, 2008 (15 comments)
Portrait of Westmoreland Davis (Courtesy of Westmoreland Davis Memorial Foundation)
Now that the naming committee of Leesburg’s future high school, HS-5, has submitted its recommendations to the school board for consideration, the question remains whether board members will take its suggestions to heart.
The committee was deadlocked over Old George Town High School and Tuscarora High School, but they also submitted Leesburg High School as a third alternative.
With three choices, you'd think the board could find one it can agree on. Board members have said they will seriously consider the committee’s recommendations, but it seems likely that the members could choose none of the above.
Tom Marshall (Leesburg) said he doesn’t like the two recommended names. He feels Old George Town is too long and that Tuscarora doesn’t offer up enough historical significance. He does, however, like Leesburg High School.
"At least people know where it is," he is quoted as saying in a recent LoudounExtra.com article.
John Stevens (Potomac) who blogs at Our Loudoun Schools said he’ll side with board members Marshall and Jennifer Bergel (Catoctin), since they represent students who will attend the new school. He has written that if they can’t agree on a name, he’ll make his own decision.
On Tom Reed’s (At-Large) blog, Loudoun Schools Dais, he writes that the new high school should be named after the late Virginia governor and Morven Park resident Westmoreland Davis.
Representatives from the Westmoreland Davis Memorial Foundation lobbied for the name at both the school board meeting and before the Leesburg Town Council on Tuesday evening.
Foundation chairman Jill Gruver admitted that her organization is arriving a little late to the naming game.
"When we became aware that there was a naming process," she said, "it became apparent that this would be a wonderful opportunity to honor Westmoreland Davis’s many contributions to state and local education.”
During his tenure from 1918 to 1922, Governor Davis doubled the amount appropriated to schools and teacher salaries, Gruver said. He and his wife also personally donated books, supplies and set up programs for Loudoun public schools.
His legacy lives on in scholarships at several Virginia universities and, of course, in programs and services offered through his memorial foundation on the 1,200-acre Morven Park, which will share a boundary with future HS-5.
The foundation’s lobbying worked in Leesburg: The town council voted to recommend Westmoreland Davis's name to the school board. It also didn’t hurt the foundation's efforts that Kevin Wright, son of former Leesburg mayor and WDMF board member B.J. Webb, sits on the town council.
The school board is scheduled to vote on a name for HS-5 on Sept. 9.
Which name do you prefer? Old George Town, Tuscarora, Leesburg, the newcomer of Westmoreland Davis or something else altogether? Share your thoughts below.
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From the list: Tuscarora--What a great name! Very distinctive, interesting, and will make for some great school cheers and apparel. That's a name kids can get behind. I can hear it now: one side yells "Tusca," the other yells "RORA!" Sends chills down your spine...
The place names are losers. Better Davis than those, but the Westmoreland Davis name is too cumbersome.
Posted by tmkelley (anonymous) on August 14, 2008 at 5:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How about Goose Creek High School?
Posted by marygail (anonymous) on August 15, 2008 at 10:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The Iroquois League of Six Nations, included the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas. The sixth nation, the Tuscaroras, migrated into Iroquois country in the early eighteenth century. Together these peoples comprise the OLDEST LIVING participatory DEMOCRACY on earth. The original United States representative democracy, fashioned by such central authors as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, drew much inspiration from the League of Six Nations. Future students can learn much from the heritage of a Tuscarora High School - the wisdom of a government truly dedicated to all life's liberty and happiness as has been practiced by the Six Nations for over 800 hundred years.
Posted by stinger (anonymous) on August 17, 2008 at 12:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How about "I Can't Believe The Idiot Board Raised Taxes In A Huge Recession Year" High School? Years from now, we could all reminisce on just how bad they were, and (hopefully) keep people like them out of office for years to come. Yes, ol' ICBTIBRTIAHRY High School would be the pride of Loudoun County.
Posted by Hoqenishy (anonymous) on August 18, 2008 at 6:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)
My vote is for "Leesburg High School". All of the other names are too long, elaborate and cumbersome. I also do not feel that the names offered have any kind of outstanding significance. Lets keep it simple -- go with Leesburg High School!
Posted by luvlsbg (anonymous) on August 18, 2008 at 12:45 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Just saw recent posting referencing the following excerpt on John Steven's blog:
Smart's Mill Sixth Grader Chiarra S was a member of the naming committee, and spoke from the podium at Tuesday's meeting, stating, "When I did the survey for my whole school they gave recommendations and we went through them and to the tally of the top 12. The highest was Tuscarora, and it came up the most often when I would talk to my friends about the names." Interesting.
Posted by susan.blacket (anonymous) on August 18, 2008 at 2:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)
There is already a Tuscarora High School just over the Potomac River in Frederick, MD. Isn't that a little close? 20 minutes away!
Posted by luvlsbg (anonymous) on August 18, 2008 at 4:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Apparently the Spectrum class at Smarts Mill was also asked to come up with a name for the new school to send to the naming committee -- none of these names were the choices that they submitted.
Posted by luvlsbg (anonymous) on August 18, 2008 at 4:19 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Dear Hoqenishy, about "I Can't Believe The Idiot Board Raised Taxes In A Huge Recession Year" maybe we should consider "I can't believe we are all going to be paying for all this stuff when the previous board sold us up the river with the snow job about development paying for itself".
Posted by quietobserver (anonymous) on August 19, 2008 at 1:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Luvlsbg: Prince William Co has schools with the following names, Freedom, Cedar, Potomac, Mountain View, Saunders. Faquier school names include Cedar and Liberty. Fairfax: Hutchison, Cedar Lane, Freedom Hill, Davis, Liberty, Potomac, Mountain View. Very similar or exactly like many in Loudoun. So what is your point?
Posted by stinger (anonymous) on August 19, 2008 at 2:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
stinger: my point against the Tuscarora H.S. being in a neighboring county is that we might actually LIVE CLOSER to a DIFFERENT Tuscarora H.S. that my kids actually ATTEND.
Posted by luvlsbg (anonymous) on August 20, 2008 at 11:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Luvlsg: Because my youngest daughter has a very good chance of going there too (if the County looses its HS-3 lawsuits or more delay occurs), we are likely in the situation you identify. Seems like our kids would join the ranks of others in the eastern/southern clusters so I just don't see that argument as a reason against this name. Don't get me wrong, I see the most advantages for Tuscarora and Leesburg names. For what it's worth, my daughter likes Tuscarora the best but I agree with the earlier comment, the opinion of Smarts Mill kids (involved in the naming committee) who will definitely attend this school should not be discounted - that's all. :-)
Posted by stinger (anonymous) on August 21, 2008 at 1:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
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