HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- Some students are finding roadblocks while applying for scholarships as Hanover County Public Schools works to rename Lee-Davis High School.
During its Wednesday meeting, the School Board decided to table the vote until October after hearing concerns from the public and it's School Renaming Committee.
The committee, made up of community members, parents, and students, selected Twin Rivers for the high school and Mechanicsville for the middle school after receiving input from residents.
However, the pending name change has forced some students to delay applying for scholarships.
In a message to students, a counselor recommended waiting to apply until the new school name is official despite the quickly approaching October and November deadlines.
Summer Miller discovered issues while applying for scholarships on Wednesday.
“When you apply for a scholarship they make you enter your high school name or there’s a drop box and you enter it. There was no high school for me,” Miller explained. “They didn’t have Lee-Davis, and there was no Hanover County Public School high school. There was nothing for me to do.”
A school spokesman said they have figured out a solution while the Board debates on the new name.
“Staff at the school and in the division are working to update organizations and institutions with the temporary name of HCPS High School so that students can move forward with their college and scholarship applications. This should help to remedy this issue,” the spokesman said in an email.
Miller addressed the Board during the Wednesday meeting and urged members to decide on a replacement now rather than wait.
“I talked to so many students here. We don’t care what the name is. Honestly, you’ve already decided you’re going to change it. Just change it. Get it over with. Let us have some identity. Let's apply for scholarships and colleges because right now you’re delaying us all,” she said.
In July, the Hanover County School Board voted 4-3 to rename the schools originally named after leaders of the Confederacy.
The Board said they will likely take a vote on a name in an October meeting and will be reaching out to the public for more input moving forward.
