Olentangy Schools seeks community input on name for fifth high school

DELAWARE — The under-construction fifth high school within the Olentangy Schools district does not yet have a name, mascot or school colors.

But that’s about to change.

The district is now accepting name suggestions for high school number five from community members via an online survey, running now until Sept. 25.

The high school will be located simultaneously in Delaware County, Delaware City and Delaware Township, on the northwest corner of Sawmill and Bunty Station Roads.

It’s set to be operational by fall of 2028.

“Our school buildings ultimately belong to our community, and we want the greater community to feel ownership over the schools,” said Assistant Director of Communications Amanda Beeman.

Name suggestions must be based on local history or geography. The district does not accept any suggestions based on a person or entity’s name and directional names.

Submissions should include any applicable historical research or other descriptive information with the suggested building name, according to the survey.

After Sept. 25, Olentangy communications staff will review the submissions, analyze the data into a summary for district leadership to review and then make recommendations to the school board.

The school board will vote to accept a name at its Oct. 8 meeting.

“The Board of Education will select the final name from the most common and notable submissions,” Beeman said.

After that, a brand committee will review submissions to determine the mascot and colors and present the selection to the board.

A familiar renaming process

Although the board of education is responsible for naming school buildings and/or district facilities, the district has historically collected community input for guidance.

Starting with Wyandot Run Elementary in 1993, Olentangy has solicited community feedback for school names for over 30 years, Beeman said.

The district followed the same process earlier this year for the naming of the 18th elementary school, now known as Deer Haven Elementary.

That survey received 387 submissions, several of which recommended names related to Bean-Oller, which is the name of the road where the school will be located.

Chief communications officer Krista Davis explained to the board on April 14 that both Bean and Oller were actually family names in the area. Since the district has not named any of its 27 existing buildings with a proper name, they kept in line with that practice.

“After name suggestions related to Bean and Oller, Deer Haven was one of the most repeated concepts,” Davis told the board.

The name stems from Deer Haven Park, which is located roughly a mile from the new school.

The next choice, Mill Run, reflected a nod to early industry in the area including grist and saw mill production. Initial Native American settlers built some of the first mills in the area, Davis said.

The last choice, River Stone, drew from key geological features, including the Olentangy River and the Delaware limestone formation that underlines the Liberty Township area.