Anonymous wrote:Coming here to point out - for the FCCPS haters that we were second behind Arlington to voluntarily integrate and renamed our schools 2 years ago.

Anonymous wrote:Woodson alum and a Woodson parent. W.T. should be dropped. Had no clue when I went there about his segregationist history.
Not sure about CG yet but he has a lot of schools named after him across the country.
Think some alums will push back. Not sure it is ever referred to it now but back in the day, WTW was a thing.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He seems like many other Southerners of his era, yet also like someone who overall did more good than bad for FCPS, including it’s Black students. I wonder whether he came to regret his earlier segregationist views in the last 20 years of his life and see the error of those opinions.

But it matters not, because our current School Board - while woefully inept at managing today’s challenges - sees a lot of benefit in canceling those who aren’t as progressive as they see themselves.

So we’ll soon get Carter G. Woodson HS, and the School Board will congratulate themselves for honoring a gay Black historian, but C.G. Woodson has no real connection to Fairfax County, and his achievements will largely be ignored if he becomes the school’s new namesake.

I guess, why do things that were once named need to keep their name in perpetuity? The superintendent is no longer relevant and it makes sense to change the name. The way they’re talking about it, it would be minimally inconvenient. Sounds good to me.

Where does it end?

WT Woodson was not a slaveholder nor did he rape a teenage slave who then bore his children. Yet we will rename WTW but still have schools named after both James Madison and Thomas Jefferson.

And the time may eventually come when we have to rename Colin Powell ES, too, since history will conclude Powell likely lied deliberately in support of a foreign war that led to the death of many innocent civilians.

The “primary legacy” test that led to renaming Stuart and Lee (because it was their disreputable Confederate pasts that were primarily being honored when two schools were named after them) was a sensible one. Yet that standard does not clearly support renaming Woodson or incurring the related costs.

The school board has plenty of money

Anonymous wrote:

The school board has plenty of money

Then, they should spend it on teachers and students--not names.

The school board has plenty of money

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He seems like many other Southerners of his era, yet also like someone who overall did more good than bad for FCPS, including it’s Black students. I wonder whether he came to regret his earlier segregationist views in the last 20 years of his life and see the error of those opinions.

But it matters not, because our current School Board - while woefully inept at managing today’s challenges - sees a lot of benefit in canceling those who aren’t as progressive as they see themselves.

So we’ll soon get Carter G. Woodson HS, and the School Board will congratulate themselves for honoring a gay Black historian, but C.G. Woodson has no real connection to Fairfax County, and his achievements will largely be ignored if he becomes the school’s new namesake.

I guess, why do things that were once named need to keep their name in perpetuity? The superintendent is no longer relevant and it makes sense to change the name. The way they’re talking about it, it would be minimally inconvenient. Sounds good to me.

Where does it end?

WT Woodson was not a slaveholder nor did he rape a teenage slave who then bore his children. Yet we will rename WTW but still have schools named after both James Madison and Thomas Jefferson.

And the time may eventually come when we have to rename Colin Powell ES, too, since history will conclude Powell likely lied deliberately in support of a foreign war that led to the death of many innocent civilians.

The “primary legacy” test that led to renaming Stuart and Lee (because it was their disreputable Confederate pasts that were primarily being honored when two schools were named after them) was a sensible one. Yet that standard does not clearly support renaming Woodson or incurring the related costs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He seems like many other Southerners of his era, yet also like someone who overall did more good than bad for FCPS, including it’s Black students. I wonder whether he came to regret his earlier segregationist views in the last 20 years of his life and see the error of those opinions.

But it matters not, because our current School Board - while woefully inept at managing today’s challenges - sees a lot of benefit in canceling those who aren’t as progressive as they see themselves.

So we’ll soon get Carter G. Woodson HS, and the School Board will congratulate themselves for honoring a gay Black historian, but C.G. Woodson has no real connection to Fairfax County, and his achievements will largely be ignored if he becomes the school’s new namesake.

I guess, why do things that were once named need to keep their name in perpetuity? The superintendent is no longer relevant and it makes sense to change the name. The way they’re talking about it, it would be minimally inconvenient. Sounds good to me.

Anonymous wrote:I’m starting to think we would be better off with no school board. The current board and the candidates running against them are more like politicians with their own particular interests (and no expertise) that take up everyone’s time and don’t really serve most of us. I would prefer that the superintendent runs things.

Anonymous wrote:He seems like many other Southerners of his era, yet also like someone who overall did more good than bad for FCPS, including it’s Black students. I wonder whether he came to regret his earlier segregationist views in the last 20 years of his life and see the error of those opinions.

But it matters not, because our current School Board - while woefully inept at managing today’s challenges - sees a lot of benefit in canceling those who aren’t as progressive as they see themselves.

So we’ll soon get Carter G. Woodson HS, and the School Board will congratulate themselves for honoring a gay Black historian, but C.G. Woodson has no real connection to Fairfax County, and his achievements will largely be ignored if he becomes the school’s new namesake.

Anonymous wrote:I’m starting to think we would be better off with no school board. The current board and the candidates running against them are more like politicians with their own particular interests (and no expertise) that take up everyone’s time and don’t really serve most of us. I would prefer that the superintendent runs things.