AVON — The Capitol Region Education Council (CREC) is taking steps to ensure that love will always win.

In an effort to recognize the caring and compassionate nature of 12/14 victim Ana Grace Marquez-Greene, CREC announced on September 2 that it will rename the CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Elementary School. The school, which is located in a temporary facility in Avon, will now be called The CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts Elementary School.

Ana Marquez Greene was the daughter of Nelba Marquez-Greene and Jimmy Greene, alumni of the CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts. Her parents are both also former CREC teachers.

Signage will reflect the name change, and an official naming ceremony will take place when the school moves into a permanent facility.

“We are deeply proud to name the Arts Academy after Ana Grace,” said CREC Executive Director Bruce Douglas. “By doing so, we honor her life and her inextinguishable spirit. The legacy of Ana Grace, and her classmates and teachers, will be forever present in our students and our community.”

As a tribute to Ana Grace’s kind and generous spirit, CREC will also incorporate into this year’s school curriculum the motto and philosophy of Love Wins, a campaign created by Ana Grace’s family. The goal is to promote love, connection, and community for every child and family.

The Greene family released a statement in response to the announcement.

“We are overwhelmed with joy to have a magnet school named after our caramel princess,” the family said. “Its hallways are filled with the art and laughter of children from diverse backgrounds. The staff is dedicated to the wellness and development of every student.

“We are so incredibly thankful to our alma mater for honoring our daughter’s memory in this way.”

Ana Grace Marquez-Greene and the 25 other children and women who were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December 2012 made a profound impact on CREC. Last fall, the agency dedicated a stone bench in their honor and planted tulips in their memory at CREC’s central offices in Hartford. The bench, the tulips, and now the renamed school will help the CREC community remember Ana Grace and her classmates and teachers every day.

The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost effective and high quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region.

CREC regularly serves 36 towns in greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 19 interdistrict magnet schools.