School Drops Confederate Nod, Takes Obama's Name

A Virginia elementary school named after a Confederate general has been given a new moniker in honor of America's first African-American president. With a 6-1 school board vote Monday, J.E.B. Stuart Elementary of Richmond, Va., became Barack Obama Elementary School. The name, submitted by students, staff, and community members, made a shortlist as voted by students, 95% of whom are African-American, reports WTVR.

Also Monday, two elementary schools in Tulsa, Okla., were renamed. Columbus Elementary, named for famed explorer Christopher Columbus, became Dolores Huerta Elementary after the famed Mexican-American labor leader and civil rights activist. Chouteau Elementary, named for fur trader and purported slaveholder Jean-Pierre Chouteau, became Wayman Tisdale Fine Arts Academy in honor of the local basketball star who became an NBA player and jazz musician, reports CNN. Another Tulsa school named for Robert E. Lee will undergo a name change following a later vote. (This school already carries Obama's name.)