Leander ISD Schools' Namesakes

Leander ISD Schools' Namesakes

By Rob Heidrick Friday, 19 December 2008

Henry Middle School

• 100 N. Vista Ridge Blvd. Cedar Park
• Year opened: 2002
• Named for: Artie Henry
• Henry was a community organizer who helped found the Cedar Park Volunteer Fire Department and installed the first main water supply to the city. He is also remembered for his eccentric personality, particularly his hobby of capturing live rattlesnakes.

Cox Elementary

• 1001 Brushy Creek Road, Cedar Park
• Year opened: 2001
• Named for: Charlotte Ann Cox
• An educator who taught at LISD schools for 25 years, Cox died of cancer in 1999 and was recognized for her commitment to students.

Faubion Elementary

• 1209 Cypress Creek Road, Cedar Park
• Year named: 1994
• Named for: Ada Mae Faubion
• Faubion taught at LISD schools from 1926 to 1974, taking only a brief sabbatical in the midst of the Great Depression.

Giddens Elementary

• 1500 Timberwood Drive, Cedar Park
• Year opened: 1996
• Named for: Lois Fulton Giddens
• Giddens was a community leader who played a major role in developing the local public education system. When Leander’s first public school building was destroyed in a fire in 1938, he led the charge to open a new one just five months later.

Plain Elementary

• 501 South Brook Drive, Leander
• Year opened: 2006
• Named for: Jim Plain
• The district honored Plain, an LISD administrator from 1988 to 1997, for coordinating construction programs. Plain oversaw construction of Mason, Giddens and Steiner Ranch elementaries and several renovation projects.

Knowles Elementary

• 2101 Cougar Country Drive, Cedar Park
• Year opened: 2003
• Named for: Patricia Knowles
• A former LISD trustee and teacher for 22 years, Knowles was recognized for her role in overseeing the district as the area’s population began to boom.

Laura Welch Bush Elementary

• 12600 Country Trails Lane, Austin
• Year opened: 2002
• Named for: First Lady Laura Welch Bush
• The district recognized Bush, a former teacher and librarian, for her advocacy of educational initiatives.

Leander Middle School

• 410 S. West Drive, Leander
• Year opened: 1996
• Named for: Leander “Catfish” Brown
• The City of Leander — originally called Bagdad — was renamed for Leander “Catfish” Brown, a railroad official who directed the connection of the Austin & Northwestern rail line in 1882. The middle and high schools were named after the town.

Leander High School

• 3301 S. Bagdad Road, Leander
• Year opened: 1984
• Named for: Leander “Catfish” Brown

Mason Elementary

• 1501 N. Lakeline Blvd., Cedar Park
• Year opened: 1994
• Named for: C.C. Mason
• Mason was one of the earliest settlers to reach Williamson County, arriving with his family in 1850. He was a prominent landowner and entrepreneur, and in 1855 he led the campaign to open the Bagdad School, the foundation for what would become LISD.

Naumann Elementary

• 1201 Brighton Bend Lane, Cedar Park
• Year opened: 1998
• Named for: Pauline Naumann
• Naumann was a respected teacher whose career in education spanned from 1948 to 1971. At one point, she was the district’s only fourth-grade teacher.

Reagan Elementary School

• Vista Ridge Boulevard and E. Park Street, Cedar Park
• Opening: Fall 2009
• Named for: Ronald Reagan
• In March, the LISD Board of Trustees voted to name the district’s new elementary school after Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States.

Rouse High School

• 1501 CR 271, Leander
• Year opened: 2008
• Named for: Charles Rouse
• Rouse, who served as Leander High School’s principal for 16 years, was honored for his leadership and initiative in instituting the school’s first advanced placement courses, career counseling services and college transition programs.

Steiner Ranch Elementary

• 4001 Quinlan Park Road, Austin
• Year opened: 1996
• Named for: The Steiner family
• Born in 1899, Buck Steiner was an acclaimed rodeo rider and cowboy show performer whose family settled on Central Texas ranchland in the early 1900s. Several generations of Steiners have carried on the rodeo tradition, and members of the family still live in the area.

Vandegrift High School

• RM 620 and RR 2222, Austin
• Opening: Fall 2009
• Named for: Matthew Vandegrift
• Vandegrift graduated from Leander High School in 1999 and went on to join the U.S. Marines, ascending to the rank of first lieutenant. He was killed while serving in Iraq in April 2008.

Wiley Middle School

• 1701 CR 271, Leander
• Year opened: 2006
• Named for: Bernice Knox Wiley
• LISD trustees voted to name a school for Wiley, a PTA volunteer and mother to eight former students, to honor the “key role of parents in creating a successful school system.”

Winkley Elementary

• 2100 Pow Wow, Leander
• Year opened: 2006
• Named for: William J. Winkley
• Winkley was a well-known Cedar Park businessman who opened a trading post in the 1970s. His family is active with LISD schools.

Photos courtesy Leander Independent School District