The Shenandoah County school board in Virginia decided to reinstate the names of Confederate generals to two schools, making it the first board in the country to do so after previously voting to remove them. In a 5-1 vote, the board representing a conservative area chose to honor the Confederate military leaders Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and Turner Ashby by restoring their names to Mountain View High School and Honey Run Elementary School. Private funds will be used for the changes, rather than tax dollars.
Shenandoah County has gone against the nationwide trend of removing Confederate names from schools, with at least 60 schools having made the change since 2020. In 2022, the same board that voted to remove the names in 2020 failed to approve a similar measure. The previous decision to remove the names was made to address racism and promote inclusivity in schools.
The vote to restore the names came after a local group, Coalition for Better Schools, petitioned the board, citing the cultural significance and historical context of the names. The group emphasized the importance of honoring the community’s heritage and respecting the majority’s wishes. They also highlighted a survey where 91.3% of respondents supported restoring the names.
On the other hand, an opposing group led by Sarah Kohrs, who has ties to the schools, gathered signatures to keep the names removed. Kohrs expressed concern about the association of the Confederate names with her children’s education and diplomas.
