In the late afternoon of Tues., Nov. 19, the Drake Leadership Council (DLC) held a Zoom meeting regarding the controversial topic of changing Sir Francis Drake High School’s name. The DLC has held many meetings since the news of a possible name change came out in early June of this year

In Tuesday’s meeting, the DLC, consisting of students, administration, staff, alumni, and parents, continued the discussion on if changing the name should be the next step for High School 1327 (HS 1327), formerly known as Sir Francis Drake High School. The committee began the meeting by allowing community members to voice their opinions on the topic, bringing forward the many opposing sides of the issue.

The DLC went over surveys that have been collected from staff, students, and parents relating to thoughts on the idea of changing the school’s name. The results varied, displaying the variety of opinions the community has developed.

Some people believe that this is only a small step towards creating an anti-racist community at HS 1327 and that changing the name should not be where the school stops. 

Others believe the decision has been rushed and feel that we, as a community, need to take more time to discuss the next step. Urging the community to take bigger actions was a recommendation for the community as something to work on before moving forward with the process of the name change.

The HS 1327 community is much larger than just the students and staff; it reaches many generations of alumni and families of past and present generations. The DLC worked to include people from as many different perspectives as possible.

After a long discussion, the DLC voted to move forward with the process of the name change. 13 members voted in favor of the change, two voted opposing the change, and one decided to abstain from their vote. 

The decision to move forward was made, but there are many more steps in the process before deciding the school’s new name. Now that the decision is finalized, there is hope that the community will unite to pick a new name that represents the values of HS 1327.