LEE COUNTY, Fla. — There's only one week to left to voice your opinion on what Lee County's newest High School should be named.
One local woman is pushing for that name to be reflective of the growing racial make-up of students within the county.
According to the district, they have enrolled 40% Hispanic students. And Carmen Salome hopes the school's final name will represent those children.
When it comes to naming Lee County's newest high school in Gateway the focus for Salome is simple. "It is time that the Lee County School District is reflective of the community it serves, " Carmen Salome said.
Enrollment numbers show that nearly half of the students in the district are Hispanic. And she thinks the school currently called "MMM" high school should reflect Hispanic heritage. "It gives them that sense of 'I can achieve this also."
Her pick? Chilean poet and Nobel peace prize winner Gabriela Mistral.
But Salome also wants others to weigh in and submit name suggestions to the district. So she hopped on to Facebook asked for suggestions and got dozens of responses such as Captain Manuel Gonzalez, Jose Feliciano, and Frida Khalo. " I mean my goodness”, said Salome.
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“It's brainstorming like this the school district encourages," said Rob Spicker, Lee County Schools Spokesman. "It is going to be a center point of that community and the students that go there and so you want them to be a part of it. You want them to take ownership early."
Got a name that YOU want to submit? Here's how to submit it: go to Leeschools.net/mmm. There are two questions 'What do you think the school should be named?' 'Why do you think it should be named that?'
The deadline to submit a name for the school is next Sunday, September 15.
Construction of the new campus will begin later this year on Griffin Drive in the Gateway community, and open to students in August 2021. The school’s first freshman class will begin attending classes in August 2020 in portables at Lehigh Senior High School.
