On a sweltering Thursday evening, members of the Byrd Middle School PTA met in the shade of trees on the front lawn of Quioccasin Middle School to unveil the school’s new sign and give their unanimous consent to establishing the Quioccasin Middle School PTA.
“I’m pretty sure this is the most fun thing the bylaws chair will ever get to do,” said Anne-Marie Leake, the PTA’s bylaws and newsletter chairwoman.
The unveiling of the Quioccasin name essentially completed a yearlong movement to rename the Henrico County school, which had been named for the former governor and senator who was steadfast in his position against desegregating schools.
Leake wrote to the School Board last July to ask it to consider stripping Harry F. Byrd’s name from the school “due to the hypocrisy of having someone on the school who did so much harm to public education. So it’s just a thrill to see everyone’s hard work come to this.”
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While a U.S. senator, Byrd spearheaded Massive Resistance to combat the U.S. Supreme Court decision to desegregate schools. Among the tactics used during this period was the closure of schools that attempted to integrate.
Hermitage High School student Jordan Chapman joined Leake’s cause and circulated a petition in favor of changing the name of the school.
“We’re just excited to open the school doors for the new Quioccasin Griffins,” said Jordan’s mother, Amy Chapman. “I think it’s going to be a great start for them in the new school year.”
The School Board voted in March to rename the school and approved the Quioccasin name in April, and it went into effect July 1. Quioccasin, which is said to have been derived from a Native American word meaning “the gathering spot,” also lent its name to a historically black community, church and former school in the area.
“I just want to say thank you, God is great and we are so thankful to the board for their decision,” said Barbara Pearson, who was born into the Vandervall family.
Pearson’s forebears played a major role in the Quioccasin community and previously owned property that became a part of the middle school’s grounds. Before integration, Pemberton Elementary School, which is adjacent to Quioccasin, was named for educator William L. Vandervall.
There are a few things left to rename. On Aug. 9, the Board of Supervisors is scheduled to hold a public hearing that would update the name of the polling place there to reflect the school’s name change.
The school’s mascot, formerly the Senators, also has changed. In May, school Principal Cheri Guempel announced a change to the Griffins.
The name honors Neil Griffin, a Henrico police officer who attended the school and served as its school resource officer for about nine years. He died of cancer March 8.
“We are excited about our new identity, and we have a lot of really awesome things planned for this coming year,” Guempel said. “So, you guys, when you’re coming in the door, it’s going to be a really different school.”
