• Houston Independent School District (HISD) Board of Trustees approved the construction of a new elementary school on an adjourning section of Crestmont Park. In May of 1977, the members of the Board also voted unanimously to name the building John E. Codwell Elementary School. A native Houstonian, Dr. John Elihue Codwell attended school in the HISD and later received a Bachelor’s Degree from Howard University, a Master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.


     
    Dr. Codwell was a retired educator, who worked in HISD for more than 50 years. He served as principal at Wheatley and Jack Yates Senior High Schools. His commitment to the district extended to various leadership roles such as Associate Director and Deputy Director of the Education Improvement Project, Superintendent Area IV, and Educational Consultant. In addition to his work in HISD, Dr. Codwell served as President of the Board of Directors of the Sickle Cell Disease Research Foundation, as well as many other civic organizations.

    The school open in 1978 drawing students from the Frost and Rhoads Elementary neighborhoods