Principal: Witchcraft Heights Name Has Tradition, Uniqueness

The is the only school in the country by that name, which Principal Mark Higgins said is "kind of neat."

But a proposal by School Committee member James Fleming to honor a long-time former City Councilor, Leonard O'Leary, who represented the Witchcraft Heights neighborhood where the school is located.

Fleming said the renaming of the school after O'Leary is an appropriate way to honor his service to Salem and the .

Renaming a school after a City official is not unprecedented in Salem. The , formerly called Middle School West, was renamed after former Mayor Francis X. Collins about 20 years ago.

Higgins, who has been principal at Witchcraft Heights for the past four years, said he was aware of a proposal to change the school name a few years back, but he wasn't approached this time around about Fleming's proposal.

Fleming said this week that the name "Witchcraft" might carry negative connotations.

"That's the first I heard of people not being happy with the name," Higgins said. "We haven't heard concerns from any staff or parent groups."

Higgins is a product of Witchcraft Heights Elementary, having completed the fifth grade around 1980, he said.

"I actually went to school here at Witchcraft," Higgins said. "I tell the students that we are the only school in the country with the name Witchcraft Heights. It's kind of neat."

Higgins said O'Leary, a City Councilor for 25 years, who died in 2007, "was a wonderful man," and is deserving of recongition.

However, "We're happy with the name [Witchcraft]," Higgins said.

Naming of schools falls under the authority of the School Committee, which could also dedicate parts of school buildings or grounds.

The School Committee is taking the name change under consideration in a subcommittee. A name change would require three readings at School Committee before passage, according to district policy.