In recent years, several high schools across America have changed its name, or even its mascot, in order to eliminate connotations to the Confederacy.
But on Tuesday night, one high school in Texas is going back to its original name, which is associated with arguably the most important person during that Civil War period.
The Midland Independent School District, at a special meeting, elected to change the name of Midland Legacy High School back to Robert E. Lee High School, which goes into effect for the 2026-27 school year. That vote was 4-3.
BREAKING: Midland Lee is back.
— Jakob Brandenburg (@Jakob_BburgTV) August 13, 2025
The Midland ISD School Board voted 4-3 in favor of renaming Legacy High School. The school will be named Midland Lee (again) — effective for the 2026-27 school year. pic.twitter.com/eQBJkRN4gB
By doing so, Midland ISD became the first school district in Texas to bring back a high school name which is connected to the Confederacy, in this case Robert E. Lee, who was the Confederate general during the Civil War. Midland Lee was the original name of the school when it opened in 1961.
However, in 2020, in the wake of nationwide protests against racial injustice largely spurred on by the George Floyd incident in Minnesota, the Midland ISD voted to change the name of the school from Lee to Legacy.
But recently, there has been a movement in the West Texas city to bring back the high school's original name. In fact, the Midland Reporter-Telegram conducted a survey in which 75 percent of those who voted wanted the school to go back to being called Midland Lee.
Also, in a statement last month per Midland TV station KMID from Josh Guinn, the Midland ISD vice president, he noted the name of Lee honors the “patriotic legacy that binds us.”
When the school was called Midland Lee, it boasted one of the top football programs in the region. Lee won three straight state titles from 1998-2000 with one of its key players running back Cedric Benson, who later starred at the University of Texas and the NFL’s Chicago Bears.
Midland Lee was also perhaps best known as a major rival of Odessa Permian, which gained nationwide fame from the book “Friday Night Lights,” which was later turned into a movie and TV series. In fact, in the “Friday Night Lights” movie, a Lee-Permian game played a prominent role.
Legacy and Permian remain rivals, and both compete in District 2-6A.
Although the school changed from Lee to Legacy, its mascot remained the Rebels, which several other schools also switched from due to the Confederacy ties.
Last season, Legacy finished with a 6-6 record, reaching the area round of the UIL 6A Division I playoffs. The Rebels open their 2025 season on Aug. 29 with a game at Dallas-Fort Worth "Metroplex" power Allen.
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