Lafayette Academy building renamed to honor Chef Leah Chase

LEORANS EFFORTS CONTINUE TO ERASE A COMPLICATED PAST IN THE COMMUNITY BY RENINAMG SEVERAL LOCAL SCHOOLS. AND SO GINA THAT HAPPENED TODAY AT LAFAYETTE ACADEMY ON SOUTH CARROLLTON, WHICH IS NOW NAMED IN HONOR OF A WOMAN WHO WAS A TRAILBLAZER IN THE KITCHEN AND ON THE ROAD TOWARDS SOCLIA JUSTICE WDSU’S MORGAN LENSTE JOINS US LIVE TO EXPLAIN MORGAN. HEY LADIES, YEAH, SO WE’RE TALKING ABOUT MISS LEAH CSEHA WHO IS SUCH A FAMOUS CHEF IN THIS CITY. SHE IS ALSO REALLY A NEW ORLEANS ICON AT THIS POINT. THE BUILDING BEHIND ME IS NOW NAMED IN HER HONOR. OUTSIDE THIS SOUTH CARROLLTON SCHOOL THE LAFAYETTE ACADEMY BANNER WAIVED ONE FINAL TIME. MY MOTHER WOULD GO. WOW, SHE WOULD BE IT WOULD BE UNBELIEVABLE TO HER STELLA CHASE REESE TAUGHT AT LAFAYTEET IN THE EARLY 2000S TWO DECADES LATER. ESH WAS SEATED WITH FAMILY. WATCHING A MURAL OF HER MOTHER BE UNVEILED. I KNOW HER AS MOM, BUT I KNEW HER AS LOVING INO KW HER IS CARI ING IT’S A SOLDIER FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THAT ISHY W THE BUILDING WILL NOW LOVINGLY BEAR THE NAME LEAH CHASE. IT IS ONE OF 26 SCHOOLS IN ORLEANS PARISH TO B REENAMED IN AN EFFORT TO HONOR PEOPLE WHO PUSHEDOR F INCLUSION INSTEAD OF DIVISION WLIL BE MOVING FORWARD OVER TIME TO MAKE SURE TTHA THOSEEW N NAMES WILL BECOME REFLECTIVE ON THE OUTSIDE OF THOSE BUILDINGSND A THOSE CURRENT NAMES THAT YOU SEE EVENTUALLY WILL BE REMOVED. THIS IS A GREAT HONOR FOR US, BUT IT’S ALSO A CALLING FOR US. TO STEP UP AND FOLLOW INHE T FOOTSTEPS OF THEIR FAMOUS. MOM LEAH. CHASE WAS KNOWN IN NEW ORLEANS FORER H SKILLS IN THE KITCHEN, BUT HER DAUGHTER SAYS THE GUMBO. SHE’S SO LOVED TO MAKE WAS A METAPHOR OR SOMETHING BIGGER AND SHE ALWAYS SAID TO EVERYONE WHEN THEY WOULD COME IN WITH ANY PROBLEMS JUST SIT DOWN AND HEAV A CUP OF GUMBO YOUR PROBLEMS WILL GO AWAY REMINDING A COMMUNITY THROUGH COOKING AND WE ARE ALL MORE ALIKE THAN WE THINK. IT’S ABOUT UNIFYING AND DOING WHAT IS RIGHT ANJUD SO AS YOU JUST HEARDN I THAT STORY SEVERAL OTHER SCHLSOO HERE IN NEW ORLEANS WILL BE RENAMED MCDONOUGH 35 IS JUST ONE EXAMPLE, YOU CAN SEE THE FULL LIST OF THOSE SCHOOLS RIGHT NOW ON WDSU.MCO LIV

A New Orleans school building has been renamed after beloved New Orleans icon and chef Leah Chase.Lafayette Academy on South Carrollton Avenue will now be called the Leah Chase Building and feature a mural of Chase. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Monday morning to celebrate the name change and recognize a $7 million renovation project, which was recently completed.Chase's daughter, Stella Chase Reese, taught at the school for several years and attended the event."When you love someone like we love my mother and the grandchildren love their grandmother, it’s just amazing when other people express their love for the same person," Chase Reese said. "I knew her as Mom, but I knew her as loving. I knew her as caring. I knew as a soldier for social justice."Lafayette Academy is one of 26 schools in the NOLA Public Schools System that will be renamed in an effort to recognize community members who fought for equality. The list of schools can be found here."When you look at buildings that have been named after an individual from the Confederacy or a slave owner, and we look at our city and our education system, where we educate a majority of black and brown students, we want to make sure that ... those wounds can have an opportunity to heal," said Henderson Lewis, superintendent of NOLA Public Schools. "So we’ll be moving forward over time to make sure that those new names will become reflective on the outside of those buildings and those current names that you see eventually will be removed." Chase's family said they are committed to supporting the education system in the city and continuing to push for social justice."She always said you have to know who you are and be who you are, but you also have to learn about other people, other cultures because we’re all brought here to live together, not separately," Chase Reese said.

NEW ORLEANS —

A New Orleans school building has been renamed after beloved New Orleans icon and chef Leah Chase.

Lafayette Academy on South Carrollton Avenue will now be called the Leah Chase Building and feature a mural of Chase.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Monday morning to celebrate the name change and recognize a $7 million renovation project, which was recently completed.

Chase's daughter, Stella Chase Reese, taught at the school for several years and attended the event.

"When you love someone like we love my mother and the grandchildren love their grandmother, it’s just amazing when other people express their love for the same person," Chase Reese said. "I knew her as Mom, but I knew her as loving. I knew her as caring. I knew as a soldier for social justice."

Lafayette Academy is one of 26 schools in the NOLA Public Schools System that will be renamed in an effort to recognize community members who fought for equality.

The list of schools can be found here.

"When you look at buildings that have been named after an individual from the Confederacy or a slave owner, and we look at our city and our education system, where we educate a majority of black and brown students, we want to make sure that ... those wounds can have an opportunity to heal," said Henderson Lewis, superintendent of NOLA Public Schools. "So we’ll be moving forward over time to make sure that those new names will become reflective on the outside of those buildings and those current names that you see eventually will be removed."

Chase's family said they are committed to supporting the education system in the city and continuing to push for social justice.

"She always said you have to know who you are and be who you are, but you also have to learn about other people, other cultures because we’re all brought here to live together, not separately," Chase Reese said.

Lafayette Academy building renamed to honor Chef Leah Chase

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