The Northshore School District is one step closer to a finalizing a name for the new high school that will open in the fall of 2017.

The High School Grade Reconfiguration Task Force reviewed results from the online survey that closed Sept. 5 and has recommended three names, in order of priority, for school board consideration. They are North Creek, Tambark and Pacific Crest.

The school board is expected to make a final decision on the new high school’s name in October.

The name North Creek was selected because the name corresponds well with the location of the new school and is the name of one of the oldest schools in the area’s history. The North Creek School District #23 was established in 1887. The first one-room schoolhouse served students until 1900 when a new larger school was constructed on the same site. It remains one of the last standing schools in Washington from this area. This schoolhouse was moved to Centennial Park and is currently being restored. The name would both give homage to the history of education in our area and provide helpful information to people who which to know the location of the school, according to a Northshore School District spokesperson.

Tambark reprsents the area in which the high school will be built. The community said they thought THS looked good. They also pointed out it would work well with all the other schools as only having a single initial, such as B for Bothell, I for Inglemoor, W for Woodinville. Tambark Creek, Sulfur Springs Creek and Thompson Creek are tributaries of Silver Creek, one of the larger tributaries of North Creek. Tambark Creek is about two miles long and begins east of 35th Ave SE, near 156th St. SE. It flows south through wetlands to 196th St. S.E.

Pacific Crest was chosen because it evokes a sense of height, suggesting high standards and accomplishment, is consistent with the sense of nature and athleticism of the area, and alludes to one of the longest and most beautiful trails in the United States, a trail that we are fortunate enough to be able to access relatively easily from this area. The name isn’t already taken, either, although there is a Pacific Crest Community School in Portland.

Additional information about planning for a new high school is available online at nsd.org/4thhighschool.