STEELE CREEK NEWS

Top Names Identified for New Elementary School

(March 20, 2014) Parents and other community members have voted on the six names suggested for the new elementary school that is under construction on York Road. The two top vote getters were Palisades, with 37%, and McDowell, with 29%. The vote fell off to 12% for the third place name, Lake Pointe. Riverview, York Road, and Walker Branch were the other names on the ballot and finished in that order.

Members of the School Naming Committee also looked at votes and discussed including the terms "Park," "STEM," and "Academy" in the name.

The committee recommended the following names to be presented to the South Learning Community Superintendent for consideration:

Palisades Park Elementary School would recognize the significance of the Palisades community, the largest development within the school's attendance area, as well as Palisades Park, a neighborhood park currently under construction adjacent to the school. Rhein Medall Communities, the developer of the Palisades, helped facilitate the acquisition of the school site and has shared in significant development costs. The abbreviation for the name would be PPES, which would help distinguish it from Palisades Episcopal School (PES).

McDowell Park Elementary School would recognize the location of the school across from McDowell Nature Preserve, which is more commonly called McDowell Park. The McDowell Nature Preserve and Nature Center are major assets to the community. The McDowell family was one of the earliest families in Steele Creek. The nature preserve was named for John McDowell, who lived to the north in Steele Creek near Beam Road. He was an long-time advocate for parks in Mecklenburg County.

Lake Pointe Elementary School recognizes the location of the school near Lake Wylie.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education likely will adopt one of these names at its next meeting on March 25 or at the following meeting on April 8. The adoption of a name will allow the school to have its own web page and allow administrators to proceed with further planning for its opening in fall 2014.

Members of the School Naming Committee also made suggestions for a school mascot and for school colors. Students will vote on these the week of March 24.

The school will be a partial magnet and include a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) program with 20 seats in each grade level. Parents of prospective students are invited to attend a meeting on April 3 from 6:00 to 7:00 pm at Winget Park Elementary School to learn more about STEM curriculum.

The attendance boundary for the new school was adopted in 2008, but students within the boundary have been attending Winget Park Elementary School since then. See New School Attendance Boundaries Adopted (November 16, 2008). See School Assignment Boundary Maps for current boundary maps for all schools.

The capacity for both Winget Park Elementary School and the new school, which each include 39 classrooms, is 767. This year's enrollment at Winget Park is 986. The projected enrollment for the new school, including magnet slots, is around 600, and the projected enrollment for Winget Park next year is around 470. The new school originally was expected to open in 2010 to accommodate an expected large population influx into the area, but growth has not occurred as much as expected during the economic downturn.

For more information and updates, see the temporary Winget Park Relief School web site or contact Principal Gina O'Hare at gina.ohare@cms.k12.nc.us.

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