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Frank McCourt (Photo via torre.elena on Flickr)

The noted author Frank McCourt got his start teaching at two New York City high schools, and come next year, his name could grace another one.

According to his brother, McCourt is very ill with cancer and in hospice care. His death would make it possible for a school to be named after him, something that a group of Upper West Side advocates have been pushing for in recent months.

The advocates want to see a new communications-themed school open inside Brandeis High School, which occupies prime real estate on 84th Street and is now being phased out due to poor performance. With McCourt’s endorsement, they have been lobbying for the next school to open in the building to be called the Frank McCourt High School for Journalism, Writing, and Literature. 

But one hitch has been that the city’s chancellor’s regulations prohibit schools from being named after living people. (more…)