08/20/2020
At tonight’s meeting of the Board of Education, board members voted unanimously to rename the new Rileydale Elementary School to become John R. Lewis Elementary School.
John Robert Lewis passed away in July 2020 after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives for more than three decades, representing Georgia's 5th District. He was a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement, working alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and others during such events as the March on Washington, the Freedom Rides and the historic march in Selma, Alabama.
In November 2019, the Bibb County Board of Education approved a recommendation from the naming committee to name the District’s new elementary school Rileydale Elementary. On August 13, 2020, the Bibb County Board of Education reviewed a request from Superintendent Dr. Curtis Jones to reconsider naming Rileydale Elementary School in honor of the late John R. Lewis Elementary School. In favor of the recommendation, the Board sent the request back to the naming committee for consideration.
The naming committee met recently, and members were in favor of renaming the school after John R. Lewis but requested community input be included in the final decision. A survey seeking public input was shared with Rileydale Elementary School family members, teachers and staff. A total of 809 stakeholders participated in the survey, with 658 voting in favor of the name change.