New Elementary School at the Key Site

Naming Committee Recommendation

February 18, 2021

Overview of the New Elementary School

Located at 2300 Key Blvd.All planning units in the new attendance zone currently attend Arlington Science FocusStudents live in Rosslyn, Radnor-Ft. Myer Heights, Colonial Village, and Lyon Village neighborhoodsWill open as a neighborhood school in Fall 2021

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Naming Committee MembersNew Elementary School at Key SitePrincipal – Claire Peters, Chair

Arlington Science Focus SchoolTeacher – Jazmynn WilsonLibrarian – Christine A’HearnParent – Rabia Oubenadi, PTA

Radnor-Ft. Myer Heights Civic AssociationParent – Heather McIntire, ASFS

Lyon Village Civic AssociationParent – Beth Ferrill, Key Immersion

North Rosslyn Civic AssociationCommunity member – Terri Prell

At-Large Community Member Business owner - Ali Hashemi

Staff Liaison (non-voting)Dulce Carrillo – School & Community Relations

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Naming Committee at Work

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Naming Committee ProcessThe committee met three times over three months

12/16/20

Initial brainstorming session and sharing community input. Created plan to gather additional feedback.

1/13/21

Shared community feedback to create and then evaluate a list of 44 possible names. Narrowed down the list to five names. Created a survey to gather community input.

2/10/21

Analyzed feedback from community survey. Discussed and then narrowed down to first and second choice names to present to the School Board.

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Five names were considered & shared with the community for feedback

Gateway Elementary SchoolThe Rosslyn/Courthouse area is often referred to as the gateway to Arlington from Washington DC. Gateway would represent the idea that the skills and strengths we develop for our students in elementary school help prepare them for and lead them to their future successes.

Grace Hopper Elementary SchoolRear Admiral Grace Hopper was a computer pioneer, whose accomplishments included 43 years of naval service. She also taught at the university level. Naming the school for her would represent the spirit, innovation, and creativity we hope to instill in our students as well as honor her.

Innovation Elementary SchoolTo be successful in today’s world, and the world of the future, students will need to think creatively and work collaboratively to solve challenges that they and the world face. These problems may be long-standing ones that need a new perspective or they may be novel challenges that require thinking in innovative ways. We hope to prepare children for both situations.

Polaris Elementary SchoolPolaris is also known as the North Star or the Pole Star. It is the brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor. Polaris would represent the bright futures for which we prepare our students.

Summa Elementary of ArlingtonSumma would represent the ideal of educating the whole student: challenging the minds of young scientists and artists; building up civically engaged citizens; raising up globally minded thinkers; and pursuing understanding of social and emotional intelligence. This investment would help prepare students for a bright future.

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386Survey respondents

The survey was open from January 22nd to February 5th. It was offered in English, Spanish, and Mongolian.

74Additional comments

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Data Collection: Community FeedbackThe committee distributed a survey among their respective groups

Survey ResponsesQ1: How are you affiliated with the New Elementary School?

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Survey ReponsesQ2: Please rank your top three choices.

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Weighted Results

Grace Hopper Elementary

Gateway Elementary

Innovation Elementary

Polaris Elementary

Summa Elementary of Arlington

650

581408

341

336

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Students at ASFS also had a chance to take a survey about the names

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School Name 1st choice 2nd choice Total

Innovation 5 2 7

Gateway 2 4 6

Summa 1 0 1

Grace Hopper 0 2 2

Polaris 0 0 0

Total 8 8 16

Committee Votes

Innovation Elementary School1st Choice

Committee Recommendation

Gateway Elementary SchoolAlternate

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The committee chose Innovation Elementary School as our first choice because we felt that it represented a skill and an ideal that we want our children to learn at the school.

Innovation is the ability to think of a new idea and then work through the steps and challenges to bring that idea to life.

Students at Innovation Elementary School will be problem solvers, creative thinkers, and collaborators.

Innovation Elementary School

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Gateway Elementary School represents the physical location of the school in Arlington and the concept that learning is the gateway to a child's future.

Rosslyn has long been known as the gateway to Arlington from Washington, DC. Gateway Park is located in Rosslyn and many cultural events are held there.

Although the school is not located in Rosslyn, many of our students live in this neighborhood and we hope the school can form partnerships in the neighborhood to support student learning. The education a child gets at Gateway Elementary school will open the world to them.

Gateway Elementary School

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Credits

Special thanks to all the people who made and released these awesome resources for free:

Presentation template by SlidesCarnivalPhotographs by Unsplash

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