Portland schools that take their names from Black leaders
Portland has a growing number of schools changing their titles in an effort to create a more inclusive and safe learning environment.
KGW
Many schools around Oregon are being more intentional around their titles, with several changing them over the past few years due to the impact they can have on students.
The first example of this happening was more than 50 years ago. In 1968, a group of Black Portland students petitioned Portland Public Schools to rename the then-Highland School to Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary, just days after the assassination of Dr. King.
In 2018, KGW had a chance to connect with one of those students, Ronda Chiles.
"It was what we wanted the legacy of the school to be, the history, and what we wanted kids to stand for," Chiles said.
Monikers have the power to hold both positive and negative historical ties. Some were named after people who built, advocated and participated in the construction and maintenance of systems that were harshly oppressive — the same systems that, despite their dismantling, remain evident by association.
During 2020, many witnessed the calling out and dismantling of some of those systems of oppression. This all was sparked due to the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man in Minneapolis, Minnesota who was murdered during an encounter with police utilizing deadly force, one caught on camera by bystanders. All officers involved were fired and charged.
The reaction to this sparked various emotions worldwide surrounding how oppressive systems can not only kill but harm communities.
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As a result, many institutions, including schools, took the opportunity — sometimes under community pressure — to reflect on opportunities for improvement and growth in working to abolish any intentional traces of oppression.
If a student feels safe physically, emotionally, socially and mentally in their learning environment they might feel empowered to do well in school.
Two Oregon school districts took the initiative after various calls to action from students, parents and community members surrounding renaming their schools: Portland Public Schools (PPS) and North Clackamas School District (NCSD).
Here are four schools from PPS and NCSD that either intentionally changed or named their schools after Black leaders.
Ida B. Wells High School Formerly Woodrow Wilson High School
Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School was formerly known as Woodrow Wilson High.
The PPS school board decided to change the school's name in July 2020 in response to the racial justice movement that followed Floyd's death in Minneapolis.
Built in 1954, the high school was named for former U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, whose administration segregated federal offices. Wilson also wrote a book considered sympathetic to the Ku Klux Klan.
A committee was tasked with the renaming of the high school and after taking feedback from the community, they came up with five candidates.
Ultimately it came down to five finalists who were all Black women:
- Beatrice Morrow Cannady
- Mercedes Deiz
- Sojourner Truth
- Ida B. Wells
- Harriet Wilson
The committee settled on Ida B. Wells-Barnett, also known as Ida B. Wells. Wells was an early leader of the civil rights movement. She was an investigative journalist, educator and one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
Nura Salah, a junior who attended the school during the end of the renaming process, spoke to KGW in 2021.
"As a Black woman myself, just that the disgust I felt seeing that big Wilson 'W' and what it represented," Salah said. "It's just amazing that we're finally here. I'm just so excited."
Adrienne C. Nelson High School Opened fall 2021 in Happy Valley
Adrienne C. Nelson High School is a new school in the North Clackamas School District that opened in fall 2021 in Happy Valley, Ore.
Adrienne C. Nelson was a girl from a small town in southwest Arkansas. She became her high school's valedictorian and overcame her school's initial decision to give the title to another white student with a lower GPA.
She went on to win various awards for advocating and serving her community. She also became the first Black women to be appointed to the Oregon Supreme Court in 2018 as well as the Oregon Court of Appeals.
As part of North Clackamas School District’s 2016 Capital Construction Bond program, the high school and Beatrice Morrow Cannady Elementary were added to the district. Per board policy, a naming committee was formed to engage the public and ultimately recommend school names to the school board.
The district issued the following statement regarding the naming of the high school:
"North Clackamas School District is honored to have Justice Adrienne C. Nelson as the namesake for our newest high school, which opened in 2021. For generations to come, her name will adorn the school building. More importantly, we have created a partnership with an advocate for children and education who will walk our halls and interact with our students. As a namesake, Justice Nelson provides representation for our students, and as a champion, she will inspire all young people to fulfill their dreams. Her legacy will be a gift to our district and the community as a whole. The district would also like to congratulate Justice Nelson on her recent appointment and confirmation to serve on the U.S. District Court in Oregon."
Leodis V. McDaniel High School Formerly James Madison High School
Leodis V. McDaniel High was previously known as Madison High School.
The PPS school board voted in July 2020 on a policy that created a system to allow schools to look into the name-change process.
At the time, it was the second time the board had voted to change a school's title following protests against racial injustices.
The school was named after former U.S. President James Madison during its founding in 1957.
The decision was made to rename the school after Leodis V. McDaniel.
McDaniel, a Black man who served as the school's principal in the 1980s, passed away in 1987 at the age of 51. Prior to becoming a principal, he also held teaching roles and various administrative roles. He was well-known and admired in the Portland community, and was admired most by his students.
McDaniel's daughter, Fawn McDaniel-Petett, spoke with KGW in 2021 on the decision to honor her father. She said she still has people stop her sometimes, telling her what a difference her father made in their life.
"This is larger than life, this is something he wouldn’t have thought," Fawn said, adding that she felt proud and humbled.
Beatrice Morrow Cannady Opened its doors fall 2019 in Damascus
Beatrice Morrow Cannady elementary school opened in 2019 within the North Clackamas School District in Damascus, Oregon.
Morrow Cannady worked as a reporter and editor for the Advocate, an African-American newspaper, starting in 1912, before taking over as the paper's publisher and owner in 1930.
Cannady helped found the Portland chapter of the NAACP in 1914. She spent her life confronting racial discrimination routinely practiced by business establishments and institutions in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest in the early 20th century.
Cannady was also the first Black person to graduate law school in Oregon, and the first Black woman to practice law in Oregon and run for state representative of Oregon.
The district issued the following statement regarding the naming of the elementary school:
"NCSD is equally proud that African-American civil rights activist Beatrice Morrow Cannady’s name adorns our newest elementary school— when the school opened in 2019, it became the first in North Clackamas to be named after a person of color, a woman, or anyone with a legacy for human and civil rights advocacy. From the start, students, families, staff, and the broader community have embraced Cannady’s spirit and vision to create a diverse school where every person feels safe, welcomed, and valued."