CHARLES COUNTY, Md. – During their April 16, 2024, meeting, Superintendent Maria Navarro and Jack Tuttle, a content specialist and historian, presented the idea of renaming General Smallwood Middle School to the Charles County Board of Education due to General Smallwood’s history of being a slave owner.
According to research conducted by Tuttle from the Maryland State Archives, William Smallwood, a Charles County Native and former Governor of Maryland, owned over 4,000 acres and had approximately 56 slaves.
Navarro went over how their proposed outreach plan would take place. Navarro mentioned they would inform all stakeholders which includes students, staff, families, Smallwood Feeder Community, elected officials, and advocacy groups. They then outlined several ways they would look for feedback from the community such as online surveys, in-person and virtual meetings, and presentations and surveys for students.
Navarro stated all outreach would be conducted between May and early June. They would then present the results of surveys to the board at their June board meeting.
The presentation also went over the cost analysis of renaming the school. Changing the school’s name could range from $10,000 for a traditional sign to $70,000 for an LED sign. The total cost for renaming the school could range between $64,500 to $124,500 which includes exterior school lettering, school graphic window film, school plaques, school banners, and athletic uniforms.
Navarro also mentioned Board Policy 7230, which states the Board may not vote on the decision to rename the school until holding at least three intervening Board meetings after notification to the specific school community.
To watch the full presentation, click here.
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Time to drop school names and just number them. The school logos and mascots can only be non-binary, non-threatening, non-confrontational, and unbiased. School colors must be neutral and not offend any persons, groups, peoples and such.
I done a quick read up on General Smallwood .
1. What prompt Charles County BOE to name this school after the General ? From what I read he done much more for our country than just own 56 slaves . Naming the school after him had nothing to do with slavery ! right ? It was to honor him for his service to a Young America. Why are they now wanting to erase this man’s history ? I dont even live in Charles County but I don’t get why they keep doing this .
More of our tax dollars to be spent on trying to erase part of our history.
Hopefully, when they start to erase Washington, Jefferson and others, they will send me all the paper and metal disks with their image on it, to me.
Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
This will make a lot people heads explode. Welcome to Charles County where the local time is 1945.
George Washington owned slaves… you don’t see his name being taken away.
Why are white liberals hell-bent on erasing the past and eliminating free speech? Oh, I get it now, if we have no past to learn from, they can try to do it again. Which party held slaves again? which party ended slavery?
The party argument you provide is moot as they’ve clearly switched ideals and agendas.