***Warning - the following story contains a reference that some people may find offensive.***
The issue of naming Kingsville's new school was settled Tuesday night, but not without tension.
The Greater Essex County District School Board trustees voted to revise the school's name from Erie Migration Academy, to Erie Migration District School.
The special meeting, scheduled before the board's regular meeting, lasted roughly ten minutes and was punctuated with interruptions and bickering over procedures.
Trustee Nancy Armstrong had requested privilege to make a statement as the meeting began, which was denied.
Trustee Cathy Cooke later asked if Julia Burgess, who first suggested the controversial name, had brought up the name adjustment. Cooke was ruled out of order.
The recommendation to change the school name passed, with Trustees Armstrong, Cooke, and Linda Qin voting no. Armstrong and Cooke then stormed out in anger.
Burgess had taken the brunt of the criticism since she first suggested Erie Migration Academy by going "off the board" and not selecting a name suggested by a committee. The original vote carried.
Following intense backlash from students and the community, the matter was reconsidered two weeks later. One student told trustees she was mortified when she learned of the name, while another said the acronym stands for an explicit sexual act.
Trustees again rejected calls to reconsider the name but did agree to send the naming policy back to committee.
Erie Migration District School is set to open in September, welcoming K-12 students from Kingsville and portions of Essex and Pelee Island.
-with files from Adelle Loiselle