Shortly before members of the Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 Board of Education learned the voting procedure to change the names of two middle schools, they heard impassioned pleas not to name one of them after former President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.
The board took no vote on renaming Thomas Jefferson or Daniel Webster Middle School during its first in-person meeting in more than a year Tuesday at the Brookside campus of Waukegan High School because procedures first needed to be put in place.
Board President Brandon Ewing said after the meeting the vote will take place at the next scheduled meeting at 7 p.m. on April 13, most likely at the Brookside campus.
While board members will vote from a choice of three names for Jefferson and another trio for Webster, they received a clear message from six members of the Latinx community Jefferson should not become Barack & Michelle Obama Middle School.
Oscar Arias, a Waukegan native and former district student, said during the public comment portion of the meeting the Obama name should be rejected because more than 3 million people were deported during the former president’s administration.
“That’s many families that were affected and separated, many of whom reside right here in Waukegan,” Arias said. “The fear that many of my friends faced of never seeing their parents again after coming home from school still resonates with me.”
He suggested the board select another of the three nominated names, the John L. Lewis Middle School, to honor the late U.S. Congressman and civil rights activist.
“Lewis truly embodies the progressive and multicultural spirit of Waukegan,” Arias said.
Wygenia Brisco, who also spoke at the meeting, said as an African American she supports naming the school for Lewis because “of what he stood for.”
Another member of the public said he wanted to see local names. Board member Anita Hanna also mentioned a preference for naming the schools for people from Waukegan who made a mark on the community. One of the names for Webster, Edith Smith, is local.
Board members will consider the names of the Obamas, Lewis and both Dolores Huerta & Cesar Chavez together for Jefferson.
Choices for Webster are Ellen Ochoa Middle School, Katherine Johnson Middle School or Edith Smith Middle School. Ochoa and Johnson distinguished themselves in the United States space program, and Smith was a civil rights activist from Waukegan.
After a group of more than 80 Jefferson students and community members petitioned the board in June to change the name there because Jefferson was a slave owner, Ewing pushed his colleagues to switch the names of both Jefferson and Webster middle schools.
When Ewing discussed the issue with the board in November, he suggested changing the name of Webster as well because, “he was a defender of slavery.” Webster was a U.S. senator and secretary of state in the early to mid-1800s.
Ewing said during Tuesday’s meeting that board members will vote until one of the proposed names receives four of the seven votes. More than 400 names were suggested, and narrowed to six choices for each school. The three nominees were decided by a vote of the students, parents, teachers and administrators at each school.
Should no name receive four or more votes, Ewing said the board can combine two of the names as a compromise, or reject all of the names which means the existing ones remain.
Taking place in the 1,900-seat Orlin Trapp Auditorium, every other row was blocked off to prevent anyone from sitting there. Though attendance was limited to 50 people other than school personnel, 36 members of the public were present alleviating any social distancing issues. All wore masks as required, and went through a screening procedure before entering.
Board members and four administrators were seated on the stage at tables more than six feet apart. All wore masks. Other administrators were scattered around the auditorium.
Ewing said before the meeting a decision was made to meet in-person to show solidarity with students, families, teachers, administrators and staff who began returning to their buildings Monday. Meetings have been virtual for more than a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Teachers, administrators and staff returned Monday to adjust to the new procedures and classroom layout, as well as professional development. The youngest students come back next Monday to begin the hybrid program, with more students following in the coming weeks.
Superintendent Theresa Plascencia said she has been to a number of schools already, and plans to tour them all by the end of Thursday. She observed some teachers who had not seen each other in more than a year.
“People miss people,” she said. “I saw their excitement at seeing each other again. They were starting to do everything necessary for student success.”
Steve Sadin is a freelance reporter.
