Clarke County board approves renaming of Cedar Shoals baseball field for Coach James Holston

The Clarke County Board of Education voted on Aug. 14 to rename Cedar Shoals Baseball Field after Coach James Holston, approving both a suspension of the district’s temporary renaming moratorium and the naming itself.

The decision followed months of local advocacy and a presentation to the board that the naming request had been routed through Local School Governance Teams (LSGTs) and district procedures. Board member Mark Evans, who moved to suspend the moratorium and later moved the naming motion, said the ad hoc committee had followed a community-driven approach: "The idea of really having this come from the LSGTs...would hear a presentation from a group, then they would themselves fill out a form that would come to the district," Evans said during the work session.

Public comment at the regular meeting reinforced community support. Reverend Sandoval urged the board to "adopt it and approve it," and alumni speakers described Holston’s long service to Cedars Shoals athletics and the community.

Some board members urged caution, emphasizing the need for clear public notice and a transparent process tied to the pending revised renaming policy. Doctor Patricia Yeager said waiting for the finalized policy would add extra administrative work for applicants; Miss Linda Davis asked the district to provide a timeline and cost estimate for processing naming requests so the public could understand the timeline and expected expense.

The board first voted to suspend rules to allow a name vote and then approved the motion to name the field. The motions were moved and seconded on the record; the chair called for a voice vote, and the board approved both actions.

The vote concludes a multi-step process in which the ad hoc committee recommended routing naming proposals through school governance teams, superintendent review, and community notice before a public vote. The board president said the naming could be revisited in the future if the body later decided to require compliance with the updated policy.

The board did not record individual roll-call tallies in the public transcript for the naming motion; the actions were entered on the official meeting record as approved. The Cedar Shoals community and Holston’s supporters said the decision was a long-awaited recognition of the coach’s contributions.