Former first lady Michelle Obama’s alma mater, Whitney Young Magnet High School, has decided their new athletic complex will bear her name.
“We’re really excited about this,” Whitney Young principal Joyce Kenner said Wednesday, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. “This is about the kids and benefiting our school community and the public.”
Obama, who graduated from Whitney Young in 1981, was a member of the school’s modern dance team and launched her “Let’s Move!” national initiative to combat childhood obesity when she was first lady. One of the pillars included in the campaign was increasing physical activity among children.
“She understands the importance of exercise,” Kenner said. “It’s all about keeping students fit. She embodies that spirit of athleticism.”
Obama, 55, was consulted about the possibility of dedicating the facility to her when she visited Chicago in November as part of her book tour for her memoir, Becoming.
“She didn’t say very much, but she seemed very excited that we would consider doing that. And since it’s for the community, she said she was happy to be part of it,” Kenner said.
The building, which will house some of the school’s sports teams and neighborhood residents, will officially open in May. It is uncertain whether Obama will attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony in the spring.
It is believed that this is the first public building in Chicago that will be named after the former first lady, per the Sun-Times.
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