ROBERT E. LEE HIGH SCHOOL

Nearly one year after Robert E. Lee High School was put up for renaming consideration by the Duval County Public Schools board, the logo for the school’s new name, Riverside High School, was released Wednesday.

Following the Duval County School Board’s decision to rename Robert. E Lee High, the Confederate general's name has been removed from the sign outside the Jacksonville school.

After nearly 11 months of debate, the Duval County School Board on Tuesday voted in favor of the superintendent’s recommendation to rename six public schools that are branded after controversial historical figures, and keep the names of three.

After nearly 11 months, the Duval County School Board will vote Tuesday evening on nine school names that are branded after controversial historical figures.

The results of weeks of community balloting at nine Duval County Schools being considered for renaming were counted and released to the public Wednesday evening, giving solid support to changing the name of Robert E. Lee High School and several other schools, but voters want to keep the name of two other high schools and one middle school.

The community input portion of the months-long process for deciding whether to rename nine Duval County Public Schools campuses is scheduled to end at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

A schoolteacher in Jacksonville, Fla., was disciplined after she put a Black Lives Matter flag up outside her classroom and refused administrators' orders to take it down. Now the case is in court.

Voting continued Tuesday at four Duval County schools on the question of whether to rename their buildings.

Students, teachers, alumni, parents who are PTA members and people in the community began voting Monday on whether to change the names of four local schools. It’s the final phase of the public balloting process and includes the school that has gotten the most attention, Robert E. Lee High School.

Some people in Duval County want the name of Robert E. Lee High School to change, calling it oppressive because the school is named after a confederate general in the Civil War. Others say the name is about of history and should not change.

A recent editorial cartoon by local artist Ed Hall visualizes an argument that’s long been made by supporters of renaming Robert E. Lee High School.

Voting for a possible name change for Robert E. Lee High School starts on April 26.

The community meetings are over, but stakeholders are not finished making their voices heard on the possibility of changing the name of Robert E. Lee High School in Jacksonville.

A school advisory committee has proposed four alternative names that could be used to replace the name of Robert E. Lee High School.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Demonstrators gathered outside the Duval County School Board building Tuesday evening as the debate over whether to rename nine schools continues. The name change meetings are over so these rallies will happen every Tuesday. During a meeting of Jefferson Davis Middle School’s advisory board Tuesday evening, eight members of the board submitted votes. Four were in favor of renaming the school Westside Middle School, the other four were for calling it Charger Academy. LINK: Duval County Public Schools’ ‘school name change tracker’By May 12, DCPS says, ballots will be made available for constituents to vote on a preferred name.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On Thursday night, Robert E. Lee High School holds its final public meeting to discuss the question of renaming the campus. She also said as adults are arguing about the name of the school, students are feeling left out. It’s been a year like no other at Lee High. AdThen Thursday, the school district confirmed a popular Lee High teacher was pulled from classroom duties after she disobeyed administrators who told her to take down a “Black Lives Matter” flag. “We weren’t being heard at the community meetings because a lot of students can’t make it,” she said.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The final scheduled meeting to discuss potentially renaming Robert E. Lee High School in Duval County brought more than 100 people out to share their feelings. Ad“We need a change, and the people here in this room today are for that change,” said another student. As such, I am devastated by yesterday’s order to remove me from Lee High School and place me under disciplinary investigation,” she said. AdOthers disagree and say Lee High has too much history to be renamed. The School Advisory Committee will meet on April 5 to finalize up to five name recommendations to include on a ballot.

Students at the school told News4Jax they had planned to stage a “peaceful assembly” Wednesday morning in response to a school administrator’s removal of a the flag. A Lee High School senior said the school’s staff prevented the demonstration from happening. In response to Lee High School admin ordering a teacher to take down their BLM flag, students are creating their own “replacements” and hanging them around campus. This screenshot shows a Nov. 7, 2020 Facebook post by Amy Donofrio, a teacher at Robert E. Lee High School. The screenshot was taken from a Feb. 12, 2021 Instagram post from Lee High School senior class president Deyona Burton as she walks along side principal Timothy Feagins.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The second to last meeting to discuss changing the name of Robert E. Lee High School took place Tuesday night, and there was a big turnout. A spokesperson for Duval County Public Schools said the public interest in the name change at Lee High School is 20 to 25 times higher that other schools. “I hope the name gets changed and everyone sees the sky doesn’t come falling down,” said Rhonda Stringfellow, a Lee High School alumnus who attended the meeting. Ad“It’s going to be Robert E. Lee High School for me for the rest of my life,” said Janie Lee, a member of the alumni. There’s a group of alumni from Lee High School are pushing to keep the school’s name, saying that Lee High has too much history to be renamed.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A compilation of video clips from the recent public meetings at Jacksonville’s Robert E. Lee High School garnered wide attention online, featuring controversial comments from some alumni speakers. The video shows 1966 Lee High School alumnus Frank Attaway speaking at the March 4 community meeting at Lee High School. “If this high school is having problems, how long has it been predominantly African American?”The student body at Robert E. Lee High School is 71.5% African American, according to data from the Florida Department of Education. Stuart Middle, Andrew Jackson High School, Jean Ribault High School, Jean Ribault Middle School are also included on the list for consideration. “This kind of bitterness is never assuaged, it only finds another target to attack and it moves on,” Lee High School Class of 1983 alumnus Harrison Conyers said.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Northside Coalition and other members of the Jacksonville community gathered Monday afternoon ahead of a meeting, rallying for a name change at Robert E. Lee High School. pic.twitter.com/D7DATGJe60 — Brie Isom (@BrieIsomWJXT) March 15, 2021Some of the names suggested during the Monday meeting included Avondale High School or Riverside High School. There’s a group of alumni from Lee High School are pushing to keep the school’s name, saying that Lee High has too much history to be renamed. It’s about Southern pride,” Lee High School alumnus Joey Steves said previously. Jackson High, Ribault High, and Ribault Middle schools were added to the list in early August.

Four schools had meetings Wednesday, including Lee High School, where demonstrators gathered ahead of the 6 p.m. discussion. “Stop Playing games change the names” is what a group of protesters are chanting outside Lee High School. News4Jax spoke with Mykyla Hooper, who was named Miss Lee High School. AdLeon Barrett, a former coach and player at the high school, says it’s history that shouldn’t be erased. ”The money will drop out from the alumni and I’d hate to see that happen.”Also at the school was the group Save the School Names.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County Public Schools is hosting another in series of community meetings over renaming Robert E. Lee High School, Stonewall Jackson and Joseph Finegan Elementary School, and Jefferson Davis Middle School. At least one organized group, Save The School Names, plans to attend the meeting and advocate for keeping Robert E. Lee the name of the high school. (An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that Save The School Names would protest outside. The district is following a step-by-step process, as follows:The first step which is on-going, schools considering a name change are holding community meetings to gather feedback. The advisory committee creates a list of possible names for the school community to vote on.

Jada Richard is on the cheerleading, weightlifting and flag football teams at Robert E. Lee High School. She competed in the Miss Lee High School pageant and was crowned second runner up. Jada mentors middle school students and has volunteered with Ronald McDonald House, Toys for Tots, My Pink Sister Inc. and Hollybrook Homes. Jada currently has a 3.9 GPA.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Amid renewed calls for the renaming of schools dedicated to Confederate civil war figures, the Duval County Public School Board voted Tuesday night to explore changing the names of six schools. The unanimous vote came after a letter from School Board Chairman Warren Jones recommending the board approve the renaming of J.E.B. Stuart Middle School, Stonewall Jackson Elementary School, Joseph Finegan Elementary School, Jefferson Davis Middle School, Edmund Kirby Smith Middle School and Robert E. Lee High School. In 2013, the Duval County school board voted unanimously to change the name of Nathan Bedford Forrest High School, later renaming it Westside High School. Demonstrators stood outside the Duval County School Board building before the meeting, holding signs, urging the district to take action.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. July graduations dates were released by Duval County Public Schools on Friday. According to DCPS, information regarding time, venue guest information and safety protocols was still being finalized as of Friday. That information was expected to be shared with families in the coming weeks. Here is a list of the upcoming graduation dates, provided by the district:Wednesday, July 15Alden Road Exceptional Student CenterMount Herman Exceptional Student CenterThursday, July 16Palm Avenue Exceptional Student CenterFriday, July 17Frank H. PetersonAndrew Jackson High SchoolMonday, July 20Baldwin Middle Senior High SchoolWilliam M. Raines High SchoolStanton College PreparatoryTuesday, July 21Sandalwood High SchoolJean Ribault Senior High SchoolAtlantic Coast High SchoolWednesday, July 22Terry Parker High SchoolSamuel W. Wolfson High SchoolEdward White High SchoolDuval Virtual Instruction AcademyThursday, July 23Westside High SchoolAsa Philip Randolph Academies of TechnologyMandarin High SchoolRobert E. Lee High SchoolThe Bridge to Success AcademyFriday, July 24Douglas Anderson School of the ArtsDarnell Cookman School of the Medical ArtsFirst Coast High SchoolMonday, July 27

We're less than a week away from Publix Bold City Showcase. One of the games we're focusing on involves Robert E. Lee High School, versus Bartram Trail High School. News4jax Reporter Scott Johnson met... Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Students and staff at Robert E. Lee High School on Jacksonville’s Westside are getting excited for National College Signing Day next week. News4Jax spoke with Lee High School Principal Scott Schneider, who said he can relate to many of the students when it comes to college. Schneider said the road to becoming Lee High School's principal was not an easy one. Schneider said Lee High School offers graduation coaches and a school counseling team to help with advice and resources to get students to the next level. Schneider said he hopes that keeping the Reach Higher campaign going and celebrating National College Signing Day will inspire more students to continue their education.