Lexington-Richland School District Five’s new elementary school in Chapin will be named Piney Woods Elementary School. The Board of Trustees approved the name of the district’s 13th elementary school during its regularly scheduled meeting on August 24.
The school’s principal, Cassy Paschal, presented the name to the board for their approval on behalf of superintendent Dr. Christina Melton. Paschal led a committee of seven individuals who were tasked to come up with a name.
Per school board policy FF, “a committee of seven or nine people will be appointed
to recommend names to the board. …The committee will bring their
recommendations to the superintendent. The superintendent will forward the
recommendations of the committee to the board with his/her recommendation.”
“This naming process has been full of research and collaboration from the community
and stakeholders,” Paschal said. “Chapin has a long-standing history and the
Chapin area of Lexington County has been called Piney Woods for hundreds of
years. I look forward to teaching our students the history of our school name
and welcoming our community as the first principal of Piney Woods Elementary
School.”
The committee will also help develop a logo, school colors and a mascot while
collecting input from the community on these next steps, Paschal added. Piney
Woods Elementary School in Chapin is slated to open in the fall of 2021.
“The naming of Piney Woods Elementary School is an important step in creating the
identity and sense of community for the school,” Melton said. “We celebrate the
collaboration, we celebrate this work of Ms. Paschal and the committee, and we
celebrate the approval of the school’s name… Piney Woods Elementary School.”
For more information on the district’s new elementary school in Chapin, visit https://www.lexrich5.org/pineywoods
