[Danielle Weston]

In an effort to streamline our 15 Apr 2021 meeting, I’d like to start a discussion on the name for ES 35. Perhaps a discussion here can lead to just a motion in Thursday’s meeting on this agenda item. I am very pleased with the work of this committee as presented to us in the 25 Mar 2021 board meeting. The top three choices the committee put forward to us are:

Juanita Craft Elementary School
Redbud Elementary School
Bright Lake Elementary School

I love them all and think any of these would be great choices. Does anyone want to advocate for any of these options to get the dissuasion going?

[Anonymous]

I love the name Redbud best, but the other two are great too. I will go with the consensus.

[Cory Vessa]

I have given this a lot of thought and my two top choices are Redbud and Juanita Craft. But in the end, I have to go with Juanita Craft because I think her name speaks to the values I want to promote in this district.

Juanita Craft overcame incredible obstacles to become an amazing leader. Her mother died when she was 15 or 16 years old. But she still graduated high school and college. In 1944, she was the first black woman to vote in Dallas County in a public election. Let me put this in perspective. In 1870, black men were guaranteed the right to vote with the 15th amendment. And in 1918 women got the right to vote. And yet, in 1944, some 26 years later, Juanita Craft is the first black woman to vote in a public election in Dallas County. That had to take a lot of courage and determination on her part. I can’t imagine the barriers she faced to do that. And she continued to embody these noble characteristics by working to integrate the UT School of Law, Dallas ISD, and the University of North Texas over the following decades. Then, she furthered her service to our country as a city councilwoman in Dallas.

Grit. Courage. Determination. Perseverance. Leadership. Service. That is what Juanita Craft Elementary can stand for. I want that.

[Danielle Weston]

I think Redbud lends itself very well to the area where the school is located as well as the architecture of the building as shown in the images at the 25 Mar 2021 board meeting.

Juanita Craft’s impressive legacy is mostly tied to the Dallas area if I understand correctly. I know there are buildings and landmarks named after her in that area including the Juanita Craft Rec Center in Dallas and the Juanita Craft Post Office in Dallas. Her former Dallas home is a recorded Texas Historic Landmark. Her connection to RRISD that I am aware of is that she was born in the city of Round Rock in 1902. RRISD was established in 1913. Do we know if she attended RRISD schools?

There are many people that have invested in our RRISD schools and students who have never been publicly acknowledged. If naming a school after a person is desired, it might be worth elevating a lesser known and previously unacknowledged local hero for this school or the next school we open.

Just my thoughts.

[Cory Vessa]

According to the Round Rock ISD History webpage about her, her father was a principal in the district and her mother a teacher. She attended elementary school here. Hope that helps everyone understand her connection to our district.

[Dr. Mary Bone]

My favorite is Redbud. I really appreciated hearing about the grove of Redbud trees in Old Settlers that were planted in memory of people and think this is a great way to extend that connection from the park to the school. I have seen many Redbud trees blooming on other campuses and the school is closely located to the main road of Redbud. I feel like the name has a close connection to the community the school is located. The name Redbud would also link the large tree that was designed into the building to the name of the school.

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

In my order of preference:

Juanita Craft
Redbud
Bright Lake

I do really like all of them and am grateful for the work of this committee!

[Author]

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