One of Montgomery County’s newest elementary schools could be named after former first lady Michelle Obama or a dairy farming family.
Recommendations for the name of the school in Clarksburg have been forwarded to the county’s school board as a discussion continues over a demand that the name of a segregationist, Col. E. Brooke Lee, be erased from a Silver Spring middle school.
A community group’s top suggestion for a name of the Clarksburg school is “Snowden Farm Elementary School,” followed by “Michelle Obama Elementary School.”
The Snowden family, a “pillar” of the Clarksburg community since the mid-1800s, operated a dairy farm in the rural upcounty and the new 741-student schools is being built on their land, according to a report on name options.
Joann Woodson is the great-granddaughter of the founder of Snowden Farms, the last living descendent of the family, according to school board documents. She will celebrate her 90th birthday in May and worked for the county Recreation Department for 33 years.
The second choice would honor Obama, the first African American first lady in U.S. history.
Obama, wife of former president Barack Obama, “is an inspiring wife, mother and community activist,” who served as the executive director of a Chicago nonprofit that helped young adults develop skills for future careers. As first lady, she focused on nutritional and physical wellness supporting working women balance career and family and volunteered at shelters around the Washington region.
“Mrs. Obama continues her efforts of promoting healthy habits, empowering women and equity in education and opportunity,” the group wrote. “She inspires all generations to give back to their communities.”
Other name options, as presented by the school board and ranked in order of preference by the work group are: Harriet R. Tubman Elementary, Mary McLeod Bethune Elementary, Ida B. Wells Elementary and Clarksburg Village Elementary.
The $32 million school is scheduled to open in the fall.
The school board has final naming rights for school facilities and is expected to discuss and possibly take action on the name Monday.
Last year, the school system named an elementary school in honor of an openly gay man, Bayard Rustin, going against the naming committee’s preferred name, which would have recognized a prominent local educator. Rustin’s name was fourth on the committee’s ranking list.
School system policy says special emphasis should be placed on memorializing deceased women who made a “significant impact” on a local, state or national level.
Earlier this year, Montgomery County Council President Nancy Navarro urged the school system to rename Col. E. Brooke Lee Middle School, opened in 1966 in Silver Spring and named after the prominent Maryland politician and founder of the county Planning Department.
While Lee is credited with creating the first land use and zoning system for the county, historians say he purposely attached policies prohibiting African-Americans from buying or renting homes in subdivisions, according to county reports.
Caitlynn Peetz can be reached at caitlynn.peetz@moco360.media
