TYLER — The proposed name change to Robert E. Lee High School is no longer on the agenda for the Tyler Independent School District Board of Trustees meeting in June.
On Thursday, during a press conference, Tyler Independent School District Board Member Reverend Orenthia Mason asked for the item to be removed and announced she no longer supports a name change for Robert E. Lee High School.
In the past, Mason was an outspoken supporter of the name change. During Thursday's conference she said she thought long and hard about her decision before changing her mind.
She went on to say, despite all the variables, talking to Robert E. Lee graduates was one of the biggest factors in her change of mind.
She said, the majority of the graduates she spoke to, are proud to have a diploma form Robert E. Lee High School regardless of it's name.
“Listening to students who graduated, and let me make this plain, African American students who attended and graduated from Robert E. Lee High School caused me to step back and think, should I put those students through that?" said Mason. "Should people who attended Robert E. Lee, just happy students wanting to receive a degree and go on to college, should they have to face this?”
Another factor that weighed heavily on her decision is the cost of making the change. Earlier this week, the board found out that the name change could cost up to $1.2 million.
“My concern is not the name of John Tyler High School nor the name of Robert E. Lee High School, my concern as a school board member and as a retired educator is whether or not our students are receiving quality education at John Tyler and Robert E. Lee High School," said Mason. "Are they prepared for the rigor of college? Or some career in life?”
Board member Andy Bergfeld, who represent District 7, was also at the press conference. He said, he is glad the situation could be resolved soon.
“It is time for this community, this district and this board to move past it and focus on all of the things that bring us together and not divide us,” said Bergfeld.