Kotora Auditorium: Solon Grads To Ask School Board To Honor Late Principal

A group of grads who want to honor will formally ask the Monday to rename the auditorium after the popular principal.

The effort to honor Kotora, who died in 2011, began in August as a social media campaign on Facebook to .

That effort hit some roadblocks because the street is owned by the city, which in turn asked the Kotora supporters to talk to the school board.

School officials have said that they don't have authority to rename the city-owned street. But officials, including Superintendent Joe Regano, have worked to come up with renaming the high school auditorium, a space that was important to Kotora, as a compromise.

Mike Cook, a leader of the campaign, said he believes they have the votes to make the renaming happen. He's also happy with the auditorium solution, which is easier for the governments involved and also has sentimental value.

"The auditorium and the arts programs were very important to Mr. Kotora," Cook said. "Everyone goes through the auditorium. I think it's nice, and the family is on board with it."

Cook said he appreciated the hard work of the school officials who have worked with him and others trying to make the name-change happen.

"I can’t stress enough how helpful the superintendent and school board have been," Cook said.

The school board meets at 7 p.m. Monday.