Big Timber favored name for District 300’s new school in Hampshire

New elementary school expected to be completed by August

Construction crews work on building a new elementary school, yet unnamed, across from the Lakewood Crossing development at the intersection of Big Timber Road and Ridgecrest Drive on Friday, May 14, 2021, in Hampshire.

Big Timber seems to be the favored name for the new elementary school being built at 1400 S. Ridgecrest Drive in Hampshire, according to the agenda for Tuesday’s Algonquin-based Community School District 300 board meeting.

The school board is scheduled to vote on the new name as recommended by the New School Naming Committee at its Feb. 22 meeting. The new school is expected to be completed by August.

A presentation on the recommended new name is scheduled for the 6:30 p.m. Tuesday school board meeting.

The school is on Ridgecrest, located just off of Big Timber Road.

The committee, which began meeting in November, took submissions for five possible names. Other than Big Timber, the others considered were Ridgecrest, Barb Taylor, Dr. Janine Steffen and Henpeck, according to the agenda memo.

There were 19 submissions for Big Timber or a variation, followed by 15 submissions for Ridgecrest, 11 for Taylor, 10 for Steffen and eight for Henpeck.

Taylor was a middle school physical education teacher and coach who died in 2018. Steffen was an English teacher and then assistant principal at Hampshire High School, who died in 2015, according to obituary notices.

Henpeck was the original name of Hampshire, according to the village’s history.

Big Timber received 1,889 votes; Ridgecrest received 1,805; and Steffen received 667 votes, according to the board memo.

Votes came in from students, staff and community members.