Princeton School Board Sets Up Survey on Name Change

The school board for the Princeton Regional Schools has set up an online survey on the district’s website to gather input from the community regarding the selection of a new name for the district.

On Feb. 7, the board plans to vote on a new name for the district at the 7 p.m. meeting at the John Witherspoon School. Once the consolidation of the two Princetons takes place, the district will no longer be a regional school district and is required by law to change its name.

The district’s sending-receiving relationship with the Cranbury school district does not affect the district’s status in terms of a regional designation. Cranbury pays Princeton a per-pupil tuition fee, but because the district does not levy taxes on Cranbury residents, the arrangement does not constitute a regional district by statute.

While consolidation will not take place until January 1, 2013, the board plans to vote on the name change at the special board meeting because the board wants a new name to be adopted  before the start of the new academic and fiscal year that begins July 1.

The name change will also be incorporated in to the overhaul of the district and individual schools websites that is underway. The board approved $12,475 for the firm Aptiris to redesign the district’s website at its September meeting, with any additional work outside the proposal approved at a rate of $200 per hour.

The board says the name change will not lead to additional expenses for the district. “The district will use every sheet of existing letterhead before the name change must take effect on Jan. 1, 2013,” said Board Member Tim Quinn, “and there are no signage considerations.”

The board voted unanimously at the last meeting to hire a consultant to create a new “brand identity platform.” Smith and Manning, a Princeton firm, is being paid $12,500, according to the resolution approved by the board,  to create a new “visual identity which includes an icon/logomark with specific graphic elements to communicate the district’s new name change due to the consolidation of the Princeton municipalities.”

Superintendent Judy Wilson said the naming options are very limited, with Princeton Public Schools and Princeton School District standing out as two viable possibilities. The board will consider other suggestions.

To participate in the survey, go to https://www.prs.k12.nj.us.