District’s newest high school, ninth grade school to be named after General Benjamin Oliver Davis, Jr.
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During the July 20 Board meeting, Trustees unanimously approved naming the district’s newest high school and ninth grade school after Air Force General Benjamin Oliver Davis Jr., who was commander of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II. Dr. Viola M. Garcia, chairperson of the School Names Committee, along with committee members Merlin Griggs and Rick Ogden, recommended the Board name the two schools after General Davis. General Davis served the United States with honor and distinction during an illustrious career, in times of war and peace. He was the recipient of the Air Force’s Distinguished Service Medal, the Army’s Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with four oak leaf clusters and the Army Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters. He retired from the Air Force in 1970 at the rank of Lt. General, but in December of 1998, President Bill Clinton awarded him a fourth star raising him to the rank of full general. General Davis was the first African American full general in the United States Air Force. General Davis was the son of O. Davis Sr., a U.S. Army officer who retired at the rank of brigadier general after a distinguished career of military service. Born in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 18, 1912, General Davis died July 4, 2002. That same year, Temple University’s Dr. Molefi Kete Asante, considered by his peers as one of the nation’s most distinguished contemporary scholars, placed General Davis on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans. Taken from July 2010 AISD Actionline |
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