Man on the Moon Committee Asks Montclair BOE to Rename Mt. Hebron School in Honor of Buzz Aldrin

A Man on the Moon Committee has formed in Montclair to compel the town’s Board of Education to re-name Mt. Hebron Middle School after Buzz Aldrin. The committee has submitted a proposal to be voted on at the next BOE meeting on Monday, February 23.

The committee was spearheaded by Katie Rubacky Severance and is currently made up of the following residents: Essex County Freeholder Brendan Gill, Jonathan Alter, Katie and Bob Severance, Jay Wall, Mikie Sherrill, Lisa Nevins, Karen Turner, Peter Zorich, Sharon Egan, C.J. and Liz Miller.

“My family has been in Montclair a very long time — 55 years. And I (and my 7 siblings) attended Montclair elementary schools, Mt. Hebron and MHS. Back then, the study of Buzz Aldrin’s life was actually part of the curriculum. As a kid, I spent literally thousands of hours playing lacrosse and hanging out in Anderson Park and can remember gazing over at the house he grew up in on Princeton Place and just marveling that someone who lived there went to the exact same schools I did and ended up walking on the moon. It’s been a mystery to me, and to a lot of Montclairians, for decades, why one of the schools he attended is not named in his honor,” says Severance.

The idea of naming a school after Buzz has been floating around for a long time. But, it was The Montclair Times‘ recent series on the issue that led Severance to inquire about the status of the idea. She reached out to BoE President David Deutsch who told her that “no person or entity” has ever proposed this to the BOE.

“I was really shocked, ” says Severance and adds, “I had one of those moments where you ask yourself, ‘OK, If not now, when?’ And with the 50th anniversary of the lunar landing coming up, the timing is perfect.”

Below is part of the proposal submitted to the Montclair BoE:

The Montclair Public School System has the proud legacy of having educated this extraordinarily accomplished Doctor of Science and Astronautics as well as one of the greatest explorers in human history. As the world watched on July 20, 1969, Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon – as a pilot on the United States’ Apollo 11 spacecraft. He is also a decorated veteran of the Korean War during which he served as an Air Force pilot. He graduated from West Point Academy before attending MIT where he received his doctorate degree.

As a Montclair resident, Buzz Aldrin attended Edgemont Elementary School, Mt. Hebron Middle School and graduated from Montclair High School. At MHS, he was a pole vaulter and played center on the 1946 undefeated State Champion football team.

Of the Montclair public school system, Mr. Aldrin had this to say, “I finished first in mathematics, finished near the top of my class at West Point and did well at MIT. I attribute that to the education system in Montclair.” (Montclair Times, January 22, 2015)

Specifically, of Mt. Hebron Middle School, he said, “That was the turning point where I focused my dedication to education. That middle school would be most revered in my retrospect of my youth.” (Montclair Times, January 22, 2015)

Why re-name something? Because a name tells a story. And the Montclair Public School District has a story to tell in the life of Buzz Aldrin. An argument can be made that we are currently not sharing one of the most powerful stories we have to tell. And it is almost exclusively ours to tell. A name communicates to the world what you stand for. If our school district stands largely for an educational foundation in the STEM fields, then why wouldn’t we demonstrate that by honoring one of the most famous scientist in the world who also happens to be our most famous resident?

Read the entire proposal here and tell us in comments if you support the renaming of Mt. Hebron Middle School.