Midland ISD votes to rename Legacy to Lee, reversing course five years after change

MIDLAND, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- The Midland Independent School Board met Tuesday night to discuss changing the name of Midland Legacy back to Midland Lee; the measure passed in a 4-3 vote.

In 2020, the district voted to shed the Confederate moniker and rebrand as part of a nationwide push to distance public places from the Confederacy. The school kept the Rebel mascot and original school colors of maroon and white.

Midland ISD Vice President Josh Guinn, who was elected to his seat in 2024, led the push to reclaim the Lee name. In a July 4 statement he said the name honors the “patriotic legacy that binds us” and called it a symbol of “shared pride”.

Advocates for the switch said that reverting to the school’s original name was not a nod to the country’s Confederate history or slavery, but was instead about retaining pride in the school’s 60+ year history.

“I’m a third generation alumni…over the years, Midland Lee…Midland Lee, not Robert E Lee, was one of the most well branded schools in the state of Texas,” said Carie O’Neal.

However, those against the switch said this of the change during a heated school board meeting, “Why would you insist, why would you fight with your words and your good name for a name that you know causes pain?”

Legacy will re-brand as Lee beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, a news release prior to the vote said. Midland Legacy Freshman will also, once again, become Midland Lee Freshman.