The Washington County Board of Education has no plans to rename the Washington County High School gymnasium after Coach Alfred C. Carson.
Rev. Eric Murray, joined by Kerryn Murray, LaTierra Harden, and Mrs. Jeanne Carson, attended the Thursday, October 1 Board of Education meeting, to request that the gymnasium and gym floor at Washington County High School be named for the late Coach Alfred C. Carson.
“We are asking that you [the School Board] put aside your own personal preferences and beliefs and listen to the people that you represent,” said Rev. Murray when addressing the Board.
During the October 1 meeting, Rev. Murray stated that he was disappointed at the previous meeting when he addressed the Board because there was no discussion or dialogue from the Board.
Rev. Murray provided each Board member with a letter from Mrs. Jeanne Carson. In that letter, Mrs. Carson explains that her late husband, Alfred Charles Carson, gave a lifetime of love, compassion and support to the entire Washington County community.
“It is my utmost plea that Coach Alfred Carson receives the honor deserved,” wrote Mrs. Carson. She added, “Heroes have been granted statues, buildings named for them and many other accolades. Thirty-five years as a dedicated educator followed by 17 years of volunteerism is an unmatched and earned recognition worthy of his name being immortalized at Washington County High School.”
Rev. Murray concluded the presentation saying that the community is excited about the prospect of granting this honor to the late Coach Alfred Carson.
“The morale of the community will be deeply impacted if we do not proceed with honoring the memory of Legendary Coach Alfred Charles Carson,” said Rev. Murray.
At the conclusion of the presentation, each Board member provided remarks concerning their opinion on the request.
Chairman Chris Hutchings began by saying he was not in favor of naming existing buildings after people.
“There are a lot of deserving people, and how do we set criteria for what is great enough to have your name on a building,” said Chairman Hutchings. He added, “I feel like we just cannot set that criteria no matter how eloquently you write that criteria it won’t be right.”
Following Chairman Hutchings’ remarks, each of the Board members provided their opinions on the issue. Gladine Thompson, Sammie Knight, Paul Turner, and Tracy Giddens all stated they were not in favor of naming buildings after people.