New school names chosen

March 27, 2007

By SHARON G. McBRIDE

Frontiersman

MAT-SU - It's official. After a unanimous vote Wednesday, the Mat-Su Borough School District's school board approved the name for the new elementary school being constructed off Hollywood Drive.

The new school will be called Knik Elementary School. Combined with the existing Goose Bay Elementary School, it will be referred to as the Knik-Goose Bay Elementary Campus. The new library under construction along with the school will be named the M. Ashley Dickerson Library, after the prominent, pioneering African-American lawyer who died in Wasilla last month.

An outdoor educational fitness trail around the campus will be named in honor of Joe Redington Sr., otherwise known as the &#8220Father of the Iditarod” for his work promoting the sled dog race.

Redington died in 1999, from cancer, and was buried in nearby Knik.

&#8220This has to be a record of some sort,” said Larry DeVilbiss, president of the school board. In less than a week, the board appointed a naming committee and came up with names that appealed to everyone concerned, he said.

Another school under construction, Highland Tech Charter School, also received favorable consideration from school board members Wednesday night.

Highland Tech requested permission to apply for a planning grant for the amount of $50,000. The board unanimously voted to grant that permission.

The grant is earmarked to help with &#8220identifying curriculum resources, align curriculum resources to performance standards, develop and align assessments and reporting tools, and to identify the thematic, project-based units of study,” reported Laurine Domke, director of federal programs.

Highland Tech High is scheduled to open its doors next fall. It's a Mat-Su District charter school that &#8220hopes to equip students with the academic, social and technical skills to excel in today's world.”

The next regular school board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m., April 4, at the Palmer High School Library.

Contact Sharon G. McBride at 352-2250 or sharon.mcbride@ frontiersman.com.