ACPS calls for citizen input to rename district office

Jun 5, 2024 2:09 pm
Alachua County Public Schools district office admin building
Alachua County Public Schools administrative building.
Photo by Seth Johnson

Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS) is calling for citizen input as it undergoes a process to rename its district headquarters, currently called “District Office.” 

A new committee for the renaming will hold two public meetings to take citizen input on a new name. The first meeting will be Thursday, June 6, and the second on June 27. Both meetings will take place at 6 p.m. in the district office board room.  

Citizens can attend the meeting or call in at (352) 955-7646 to give their suggestions. Either option will allow three minutes to speak to the committee.  

Become A Member

Mainstreet does not have a paywall, but pavement-pounding journalism is not free. Join your neighbors who make this vital work possible.

See Member Benefits

The district also has an online form available for citizens to suggest names for the office. 

The building first opened around the turn of the 20th century, serving students of all grades as the Gainesville Graded and High School. A few decades later, it became Kirby Elementary School. 

In 1977, the building closed as a school. In 1981 it reopened as the district’s administrative office, officially called “District Office” but informally and commonly referred to as “Kirby Smith.” In 2017, the Kirby lettering was removed and replaced by a new, digital marquee. 

In February, the School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) contemplated renaming the office in honor of civil rights leader, former school board member and county commissioner Charles S. Chestnut III, who died in December. 

After some discussion, the board voted unanimously on Feb. 6 to form an ad hoc committee for the renaming of the office, allowing for transparency and community input. 

Board policy requires that a proposed name should either be “descriptive of the geographical area in which the facility is located” or named in honor of a deceased person who has “made a significant contribution to the enhancement of education generally or the District in particular or to the well-being of the local, national, or international community.” 

According to district spokesperson Jackie Johnson, the following people are on the committee so far, but more will be added:

Karen Alford

Kali Blount 

Brenda Brooks

Prescott Cowles 

Rep. Yvonne Hinson

Ed Jennings 

Jeffrey King

Cathy Norman

Rev. Ronald Rawls

Helen Strain

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the names of committee members.

Share this post:

  • Glory Reitz

    Glory Reitz is a Mainstreet Daily News reporter based in Gainesville. She earned a degree in communication with an emphasis in journalism and has served as editor-in-chief for two college newspapers. Glory is a sucker for any good story but is especially distractible by anything pertaining to Africa or classic British literature. A big fan of long, long walks, Glory has yet to actually get lost in the woods—but that doesn’t mean she’ll stop trying.

    View all posts
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
2 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
art guerrilla

symptomatic of a useless, top-heavy bureaucracy, endlessly inventing time-wasting exercises in feeling self-important, and justifying their otherwise useless positions… how many hours wasted on such inconsequential BS insread of confronting class discipline issues which FLAT OUT RUIN public education ? ? ? these people are worse than useless, THEY are the impediment to better schools…

2
Reply
Katie

I nominate KIRBY SMITH as the name.

1
Reply