Mathews Elementary School.

That is the new name for the school that had been called Lee-Jackson Elementary before the Mathews County School Board voted last summer to remove the names of the two Confederate generals from the building.

School board members voted unanimously to approve the new name during Tuesday night’s meeting, which was held in the Harry M. Ward Auditorium at Mathews High School.

In approving Mathews Elementary, the school board went against the recommendation of an ad hoc committee that had been tasked with coming up with a replacement name for Lee-Jackson. The School Name Advisory Committee had put forward the name Bay Haven Elementary as its preferred choice.

But that choice did not have popular support. A community survey conducted after the Aug. 18, 2020 decision to remove the name overwhelmingly favored Mathews Elementary. Out of a total of 294 responses, Mathews Elementary was the top choice of 182, with only eight selecting one of several bay them...