New Clarksburg School to be Named after F. Wilson Wims

The Montgomery County Board of Education voted unanimously Monday night to name a new Clarksburg cluster elementary school after F. Wilson Wims, a civic and community leader who lived in Clarksburg his entire life. Wilson Wims Elementary School, which opens in August, will be the 202nd school in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).

The naming process for the school began in February with the Board of Education suggesting four names. The Board asked that a School Naming Advisory Committee be formed to consider those names, as well as look at other suggestions from the community. The committee was chaired by Sean McGee, the principal of the new school, and included community members and parents of students who will attend the school.

The School Naming Advisory Committee recommended six names, with Wilson Wims Elementary School as the top choice.  Other names considered by the advisory committee were Frederick Douglass, JoAnn (Jody) Leleck, Nelson Mandela, Snowden Farm, and Harriet Tubman. While the recommendation of the committee is taken very seriously, the final decision rests with the Board of Education, according to MCPS Regulation FFA-RA, Naming School Facilities.

Wims owned a construction company in Clarksburg and was involved in many civic and community activities. He was a strong supporter of athletics in Clarksburg, and the baseball field at Clarksburg High School is named for him. Mr. Wims died in February 2014.

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