Residents urge York County School Board to rename Magruder Elementary and question federal DEI directives

Three public speakers addressed the York County School Board during the March 24 public-comment period, raising separate but related concerns: (1) whether the division had complied with a federal Department of Education certification tied to administrative guidance, and (2) whether Magruder Elementary’s name should be changed because of historical associations with J.B. Magruder.

Pam Puccio, who identified herself as a District 4 resident, said the food bank is in need of donations and then addressed a national “day of peaceful civil disobedience” scheduled for May 1. She said the U.S. Department of Education’s actions around DEI and related certifications amounted to ideological pressure and urged the board to disclose whether York County had signed any federal certification she said would limit curriculum. Puccio said silence on the issue would be unacceptable and described federal demands as “extortion” if the division had signed such a certification.

Yvonne Johnson, a homeowner in District 1, urged the board to consider local desegregation history in discussions about school names. She cited Green v. New Kent County as a pivotal local case that required meaningful desegregation efforts after Brown v. Board of Education and said that local naming decisions and historical context matter to students’ identity and understanding of the past. Johnson urged the board to “do the right thing and rename McGruder.”

Mary Lassiter of Bruton District challenged aspects of an administrative report about the naming of Magruder Elementary presented to the superintendent. She said the historical record in the report contained conjectures and inconsistencies, argued that the school naming was tied to local segregation-era practices, and disputed elements of the district’s research about place names and historical dates. Lassiter urged the board to consider the historical evidence and the meanings conveyed by school names.

The chair closed the public-participation period after the three speakers; no board action on renaming was recorded at the March 24 meeting. The transcript shows board members received the public comments and proceeded to other agenda items, including financial matters and policy votes.