100 signatures reached
To: Arlington County School Board, Superintendent, and Naming Committee
Keep the Historically Significant Name "Walter Reed Elementary School” for the Reed School Building!
Sign this petition to keep the name "Walter Reed Elementary School" for the elementary school scheduled to open Fall 2021 on the Reed School Building site.
Why is this important?
Twelve voting members of a Naming Committee appointed by the Arlington School Board (and representing an *estimated 228,400 Arlington County residents) will submit their top recommendation and one alternate to the Arlington School Board on Thursday, March 25, 2021. The Arlington School Board will vote on the name April 8, 2021.
The Naming Committee has selected the following options with no historical significance for the re-naming of the Reed School Building scheduled re-open this Fall 2021:
Cardinal,
Compass,
Exploration,
Kaleidoscope and
Passport.
The "Walter Reed Elementary School" name is a strong and powerful brand tied to the desegregation of Arlington Public Schools (the first county in Virginia to desegregate its schools). Walter Reed Elementary School in particular stands out because the success of its integration efforts gained the attention of the US Department of Education.
It has a history of welcoming students from other schools and serves as an excellent model for combining schools today and in the future. Let's build on this foundation rather than erase it. "Walter Reed Elementary School" meets the Arlington County School Board policy on naming facilities (Policy F-6.1).
Keeping the Walter Reed Elementary School name offers opportunities for important conversations to take place through lesson plans designed for the school's children tied to movements and the issues surrounding them taking place today. The name represents the challenges, struggles, and successes of administrators, teachers, parents, and children during a turning point in Arlington's history.
The Arlington Historical Society has volunteers who provide instruction for students. Also, digital stories in the form of podcasts, taped interviews, and other applications of today's technology can certainly make rich additions to the curriculum based on the Walter Reed Elementary School brand.
Please click on the link below or copy and paste it to a browser to read an article about the work done by the teachers and administrators at Walter Reed Elementary School to welcome students from other schools and the process they used to integrate the school:
http://arlingtonhistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/1997-5-Reed.pdf
The name "Walter Reed Elementary School" also pays tribute to Dr. Walter Reed, the physician whose medical research contributed to the development of a vaccine for Yellow Fever that saved thousands of lives (and continues to save lives today as there is no cure for this disease). His life story is exemplary and an important chapter in STEM education especially with today's focus on vaccines.
Please click on the link below or copy and paste to a browser to read an article from the National Museum for Health and Medicine that tells his story: National Museum of Health and Medicine (NMHM): U.S. Army Maj. Walter Reed: 1893 - 1902.
https://www.medicalmuseum.mil/index.cfm?p=visit.directors.reed&fbclid=IwAR3WCh82MWJ4EJ-qgGjQUgGq2S9WN4_MBy7iErqiFwG6rdhtTohWyzQXOa0
*This estimated Arlington County population as of January 1, 2020 is from the official Arlington County website.
The Naming Committee has selected the following options with no historical significance for the re-naming of the Reed School Building scheduled re-open this Fall 2021:
Cardinal,
Compass,
Exploration,
Kaleidoscope and
Passport.
The "Walter Reed Elementary School" name is a strong and powerful brand tied to the desegregation of Arlington Public Schools (the first county in Virginia to desegregate its schools). Walter Reed Elementary School in particular stands out because the success of its integration efforts gained the attention of the US Department of Education.
It has a history of welcoming students from other schools and serves as an excellent model for combining schools today and in the future. Let's build on this foundation rather than erase it. "Walter Reed Elementary School" meets the Arlington County School Board policy on naming facilities (Policy F-6.1).
Keeping the Walter Reed Elementary School name offers opportunities for important conversations to take place through lesson plans designed for the school's children tied to movements and the issues surrounding them taking place today. The name represents the challenges, struggles, and successes of administrators, teachers, parents, and children during a turning point in Arlington's history.
The Arlington Historical Society has volunteers who provide instruction for students. Also, digital stories in the form of podcasts, taped interviews, and other applications of today's technology can certainly make rich additions to the curriculum based on the Walter Reed Elementary School brand.
Please click on the link below or copy and paste it to a browser to read an article about the work done by the teachers and administrators at Walter Reed Elementary School to welcome students from other schools and the process they used to integrate the school:
http://arlingtonhistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/1997-5-Reed.pdf
The name "Walter Reed Elementary School" also pays tribute to Dr. Walter Reed, the physician whose medical research contributed to the development of a vaccine for Yellow Fever that saved thousands of lives (and continues to save lives today as there is no cure for this disease). His life story is exemplary and an important chapter in STEM education especially with today's focus on vaccines.
Please click on the link below or copy and paste to a browser to read an article from the National Museum for Health and Medicine that tells his story: National Museum of Health and Medicine (NMHM): U.S. Army Maj. Walter Reed: 1893 - 1902.
https://www.medicalmuseum.mil/index.cfm?p=visit.directors.reed&fbclid=IwAR3WCh82MWJ4EJ-qgGjQUgGq2S9WN4_MBy7iErqiFwG6rdhtTohWyzQXOa0
*This estimated Arlington County population as of January 1, 2020 is from the official Arlington County website.