A downtown Lexington middle school, more than a century old, is being renamed this spring

By spring 2025, the name of Lexington Traditional Magnet Middle School could change to any one of a number of titles that officials think better reflect its history.

School officials on Thursday hosted a public forum to discuss the possibility of renaming the school to better reflect the values, diversity, and history of the community. The forum was at the Lyric Theatre in downtown Lexington. At this point, the options for changing the name are open ended.

The list includes:

▪ East End Middle School or Deweese Street Middle School for its geographic location.

▪ Lewis and Harriet Hayden Middle School for Black abolitionists who escaped from slavery in Kentucky.

▪ Helen Caise Wade Middle School for the first Black student to integrate Fayette County Schools.

▪ Zirl Palmer Middle School, after Zirl A. Palmer, a Lexington pharmacist, community advocate, and the first Black appointed to the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees.

District officials want a school name that embraces the history and significance of Lexington’s East End, said Principal Bryne Jacobs, who also said, “We also want a school name that embodies the spirit of our programming that exists now at LTMS.”

“We will not move forward without getting robust feedback from our stakeholders and our community. Ultimately, it’ll be our students and our families that inform that decision and let us know what we want to call our school moving forward,” he said.

The school at Fourth Street and North Limestone has served East End Lexington for more than a century. It opened its doors as Lexington Senior High School, the first high school in Fayette County in the early 1900s, Jacobs said.

Its name was changed to Lexington Junior High School when Henry Clay High School opened and again in the 1990s to Lexington Traditional Magnet Middle. That name doesn’t fit any more, Jacobs told a small audience Thursday night, given that the school is transforming.

“As we look at our programming and what we do to serve kids every single day, we realize that the name on our building doesn’t really represent the values or what we’ve become.”

“What I mean by that is we are not traditional in any way. We’re innovative. We’re achievement-oriented. We’re moving forward,” Jacobs said.

The approximately 300 students in the school are enrolled in the Visual and Performing Arts Hub or Pathways, he said, but other students meeting certain criteria can attend.

Under the district’s naming policy, the school can generally be named after a prominent figure of good character or a geographic location. Bill Harris, who lives in the community, is among those who thinks the school should be renamed after the Haydens, who fled slavery on the Underground Railroad.

A statue honoring the couple is planned at the school, regardless of the school’s new name.

Robert Hodge, the president of the William Wells Brown Neighborhood Association and a real estate investor, said it’s important that community members have a role in renaming the school.

Hodge is concerned that neighbors weren’t given more notice of Thursday night’s meeting.

There will be a series of open forums aimed at getting community feedback.

Jacobs said he would like for the school to be renamed in time for the next academic school year.

“Our kids are going to learn so much about this community that they didn’t know prior, just by going through this process. And it’s our community bringing these recommendations,” Jacobs said.

“Our scholars will be able to research each of the recommendations and do presentations in the community about each one. It’s my goal that we have a recommendation by May.”

This story was originally published December 6, 2024 at 10:59 AM.