Sault-area school board bucks tradition by changing school naming policy

The Algoma District School Board (ADSB) is bucking tradition, with a change to its policy on naming schools.

Going forward, the board will not be naming future schools after people.

The decision was made in part because of the recent situations involving John A. Macdonald statues and depictions and the former Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University).

The latter, named after Egerton Ryerson, was renamed because of its namesake's tie to colonialism and the residential school system – a similar reason for the removal of monuments named after Canada's first prime minister.

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Elaine Johnston is the board’s vice chair and its First Nation Trustee.

While the idea came from fellow trustee, Susan Meyers, Johnstone said she believes it was the right move to make.

“Sometimes when we name we don’t understand the history or the moral character of the person that we’re naming the school,” said Johnston.

Board chair Jennifer Sarlo told CTV News that she shares this sentiment.

“There’s lots of creative options out there and we just felt that naming an individual is one we didn’t need to have in our list,” said Sarlo.

Included in those options are:

• the name of the street on which the school is located
• A feature of the district with which the school serves
• An historical name that once applied to the area
• Wording that is supportive of the Board's mission, vision, and values and meets the best interests of the school's students

The school board expects to have names to choose from by June, something Johnston, who is on the naming committee, takes pride in.

“School names give you as students, or myself as a student, a sense of identity, place, and remembrance,” she said.

“And a place that we’re proud of. Names of schools are really important. It identifies where we’ve come from and we need to be proud of the institution that we’ve graduated from.”

The policy change is not for everyone.

Bruce Douville is a history professor at Algoma University, and said he believes this is the board ‘going nuclear’ to avoid a possible negative incident.

"In the process of deciding to not name a building after somebody, I think you lose something," said Douville.

He told CTV News he understands shying away from those with a potentially ‘dark past,’ but believes that with appropriate research, there can be a benefit to naming a school after an important member of society.

“We’re just going to have to have those assessments (on a namesakes' character) periodically,” said Douville.

“And I don’t think that’s a bad thing, but I don’t think it means that we stop naming buildings after people. Commemoration does serve a purpose and it does serve a value.”

There are a number of schools named after historical figures run by the ADSB.

School board officials said they are not looking at renaming them at this time.

However, Johnston said that it's a discussion "they may have down the road."