Andrea Bocelli Elementary? Medford Talks Columbus Replacement

MEDFORD, MA — Official talks over a new name for the Columbus Elementary School won't begin until next month, but the School Committee briefly touched on some ideas for the renaming process at its meeting Monday. Some members said the new name should reflect Medford's Italian-American population.

"I would hope if the name is going to be changed, we would think about other Italian-Americans or Italians that we would be able to recognize and honor the culture," Superintendent Marice Edouard-Vincent said.

An example: Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, whose music the superintendent said she "loves."

"We don't have another school right now that actually represents the Italian heritage," Edouard-Vincent said.

Since the School Committee voted to change the name last June, the issue has remained divisive throughout the community. Member Paulette Van der Kloot said the Committee has received roughly 30 letters both for and against the change, as well as a petition that had more than 1,800 names in opposition, including 395 residents.

"We need some help bringing our community together on this," Van der Kloot said. "I think it's deeply painful to see such a large rift, and people on both sides are obviously committed."

The Committee does not want to make the same mistakes it was accused of making the first time around. The initial vote to axe Columbus's name came under fire from both Italian-American heritage organizations and residents who said they were not aware the Committee was taking up the resolution.

The Committee announced a meeting on the new name a month in advance – March 10 at 5:30 p.m. – and discussed the importance of inviting various stakeholder groups, including Italian-American organizations, the NAACP, students and community members.

Van der Kloot proposed honoring the Italian-American community with a new name.

"The question is, in this very difficult discussion for our community, how can we come together in a positive way?" she said.