OTTUMWA —
The Ottumwa school board narrowed the list of names for the new elementary school from three to two.
Board members bounced between “Liberty Elementary School” or “Fahrney Elementary School,” though they could not come to a consensus at their meeting Monday night.
“Fahrney was brought up as another name due to all the scholarships the Fahrney family has given to all of the students current and in the past,” said board president Carol Mitchell.
Besides a military and patriotic significance, Liberty has some historical significance in Wapello County.
There used to be a country school in Keokuk Township called Liberty near Forest Lake Camp.
A former school board member, Mary Hoff, also suggested naming the new school after a former board member, Jack Staebler, or an educator, Willis Ahrens.
Board vice president Payson Moreland said he couldn’t think of a more fitting name for the school than Fahrney due to the $5.5 million in scholarships the family has awarded to 2,800 students over the years.
“The thing I like about it is it has meaning,” Moreland said. “Liberty does because it was an old school, but Fahrney has history and meaning to it. I think that’s kind of important.”
Board member Jeff Strunk said he understood the significance of the Fahrney name, but Liberty holds meaning for everyone in the community.
“Liberty, to me, has quite a bit of meaning when you attach it to the military, not just our guard unit, who is doing more than what was probably ever expected of those guard units when they were first established,” Strunk said. “These World War II veterans are dying off by the day, by the month. That word, ‘liberty,’ to them at that time period and to the country meant so much more than I think gets lost in translation of what it really means to people today.”
Another thing to consider, Strunk said, is the young children going to this school only know the United States as a nation at war.
While he said he would not object to the school being named Fahrney, he wanted to let people know why Liberty was not a “dumb name, a ‘blah’ name.”
Both board members Ron Oswalt and Cindy Kurtz-Hopkins said they were on the fence between Fahrney and Liberty.
“I think either name is going to be a good name, so I’m not upset either way we go,” Moreland said.
Community News Network
Related Photos
-
Working on cubbies: Seeth Hood worked on installing cubbies in the new elementary school off of Traxler Drive Monday morning. At the school board meeting Monday night, members narrowed the name of the school to either “Liberty” or “Fahrney.” Chelsea Davis/The Courier
Share your thoughts!
Ottumwa narrows school name to two options
School board considers budget possibilities based on different allowable growth outcomes
- Community News Network
-
-
VIDEO: NSA director says 50 plots foiled
General Keith Alexander says two recently disclosed surveillance programs on international communications are critical in the terrorism fight.
-
Called 'Next Stephen Hawking,' teen is perfect on math exam
There's a wall on the third floor of Lewiston-Porter High School dedicated to celebrating perfect scores on state mathematics exams. A new name joined the growing list Tuesday, which brought a smile to the face of everyone involved.
-
Bakery mix-up goes viral after cat drawn on girl's head
A photo of one graduate's cake has gone viral on Reddit due to a bakery mix-up that left a cat, instead of a cap, drawn on her head.
-
VIDEO: Rapper steps on American flag
Lil Wayne sparked a controversy when he stepped on an American flag during the filming of his new music video, but the rapper later said it was a mistake and unintentional.
-
Facebook's organ donor status sends registrations soaring
Facebook's addition of a way for its users to tell people their organ-donor status helped boost the number of people who registered as donors 21-fold in one day.
-
VIDEO: Britney Spears' sons to make acting debut
Britney Spears recorded a new song for the "The Smurfs 2," and her sons Sean Preston and Jayden will make a cameo in the music video.
-
White House, NASA want help hunting asteroids
The White House and NASA on Tuesday will ask the public for help finding asteroids that potentially could slam into the Earth with catastrophic consequences.
-
Caught on tape: Fla. teacher accused of beating autistic child
A surveillance video shows David Baier, a former special needs teacher in Davie, Fla., picking up a 12-year-old autistic student by his hair and then pushing him to the floor.
-
Is it really possible to not know you're pregnant until the birth?
Trish Staine had just finished running 10 miles while training for a half-marathon when she started going into labor. The mother of three said she hadn't gained any weight or felt any fetal movement in the months before and had no idea she was pregnant. Is it possible for a woman not to know she's pregnant before she starts giving birth?
-
VIDEO: Amphibious bus filled with tourists sinks
In Liverpool, England, a "duck bus" -- which is supposed to be amphibious -- sank while full of tourists.
-
State photo-ID databases become troves for police
The faces of more than 120 million people are in searchable photo databases that state officials assembled to prevent driver's-license fraud but that increasingly are used by police to identify suspects, accomplices and even innocent bystanders in a wide range of criminal investigations.
-
VIDEO: Miss Utah flubs answer on income inequality
Responding to an interview question in Sunday's Miss USA Pageant, Miss Utah Marissa Powell says the country needs to "create education better."
-
When trust in Uncle Sam takes a beating, workers are bruised
The recent spate of controversies - revelations about the massive collection of electronic data by the National Security Agency, the Internal Revenue Service's political targeting and conference scandals, and the seizure of Associated Press telephone records - undermines confidence in government.
-
VIDEO: You won't believe how much Google interns are paid
Many interns work for free. Not at Google.
-
Purchases by dementia sufferers put stores in quandary
An increasing number of lawsuits have been filed across Japan against department stores that allowed unusual purchases to be made by elderly people with dementia.
- More Community News Network Headlines
-
