The renaming process for what used to be known as École Sir John A. Macdonald Public School is underway, according to a statement from the Limestone District School Board.
This summer, on the same day Kingston city council voted to remove Macdonald’s statue from City Park, Kingston’s public school board voted to temporarily change the name of the school to the École Kingston East Elementary school while the board worked on coming up with a new name.
Earlier this week, the board announced that a renaming committee will be meeting over the next several weeks to work out a new name.
The process will include Indigenous consultation.
“The renaming process will follow a process like that used in previous school naming processes but with an emphasis on how and why the former name was harmful, and what name attributes would respect and honour the Indigenous experience,” the board said.
An Indigenous education team will be working with students from kindergarten to Grade 6 in early November to communicate the renaming process in what the board calls an “age-appropriate way.”
Education will also be provided for family members and the broad community.
The board will issue a call out for names, which will be open to students, families, staff and members of the community, through an online survey to be launched next month.
The renaming committee will then choose a short list that “honours equity, diversity, and inclusivity.”
The final list of names will be presented to the school board in February of next year, and the choice will be made by trustees.
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