RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — George Wythe High School could have a new name soon after a fourth renaming community meeting took place at the school on Wednesday evening.
After hearing feedback from the community during the meeting, the Richmond School Board will now narrow down the new name choices from five to three. The five choices are Culture High School of the Arts, Capitol City High School of the Arts, Heritage High School of the Arts, South Richmond High School of the Arts and Gateway High School of the Arts.
“The name Gateway High School is representative of our school’s mission. It celebrates our school as a gateway to opportunity for all students,” one community member who spoke at the meeting, Aaron Berryhill, said in support of the name Gateway High School of the Arts.
The high school is currently named after founding father George Wythe, who owned slaves during his lifetime. The school was added to a list with three other schools to be renamed this year because their names are connected to the Confederacy or slave owners.
“We know that the issues that have plagued our community has been polarizing, however, we know that the students inside of this building definitely want change,” Kevin Olds, the principal of George Wythe High School, said.
Officials hope the renaming will mark a fresh start for George Wythe High, which will also recieve new construction in the summer.
“We feel like the name change, along with the new building, along with the new culture and climate that we’re creating is going to create more of a buzz about being a positive entity inside of the Southside of Richmond,” Olds said.
George Wythe High School’s new name will officially be chosen on the June 5 School Board meeting, according to school officials.
School leaders previously estimated the renaming for the schools would cost between $25,000 to $50,000 each, which would cover creating new signs, sports uniforms and stationary.
