Jefferson School In Maplewood To Be Renamed After Columbia High Grad: Report

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — In its ongoing quest to rename Jefferson Elementary School in Maplewood, the majority of the South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education members have decided to name it after Columbia High School's first Black female graduate, a story in Village Green said on Wednesday night.

At Monday night's board meeting, the name of Winnie Delia Bolden, who graduated from CHS in 1912, was first favored during a "non-binding, informal straw vote," a story in TAPInto said.

Other Possibilities

The Village Green story said that some criticized the decision, saying more input should have been considered.

The name was among those a list of names submitted by students.

The list also includes other prominent CHS graduates and members of marginalized groups, like Olympian Joetta Clark Diggs, CHS '80.

The board had voted to approve a resolution last August to seek other names for the school, as it "bears the name of an enslaver committed to upholding the institution of slavery." (You can read about Jefferson's position on slavery here or here.)

Other schools around the country have considered renaming schools that were named after Jefferson.

READ MORE: School In Maplewood Will Change Name From 'Enslaver' Jefferson