NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson; John Mercer Langston, a law professor and Virginia’s first African- American representative in Congress; and Ona Judge, a woman enslaved by George and Martha Washington who escaped to freedom in 1796 are among the latest nominations to replace the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in the U.S. Capitol.

Their names were submitted to the Commission for Historical Statues in the U.S. Capitol, which held an online hearing Tuesday to receive public comment.

The meeting was the commission’s first since the suggestion process opened to the public in mid-October.

“I want to commend people who would take the time to present to the commission on something that’s going to be a legacy for Virginia,” said commission member Margaret Vanderhye. “How blessed are we in Virginia to have so many people of distinguished background, accomplishments and a wealth of opportunities to choose from among some very, very excellent candidates.”

These latest suggestions included nominations from public and private school students, from kindergarten to college, that were coordinated in part by the state Department of Education.

“We are excited to each submit our own name for the statue, an explanation for our choice and an artistic rendering,” wrote the seventh-grade class of Orchard House School of Richmond, which is located just around the corner from the state-owned Lee statue on Monument Avenue.

Submissions from the class ranged from pioneering banker and businesswoman Maggie L. Walker and former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder to Black Panther co-founder Huey P. Newton and Virginia’s official state bird, the cardinal. “We look forward to finding out what the new statue will be!” the class wrote.

A frequently recurring name among the submissions so far has been civil rights attorney Oliver W. Hill Sr., with former Richmond Mayor and state Sen. Henry L. Marsh III among those calling for Mr. Hill to replace Gen. Lee in representing Virginia in the National Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capitol.

“Oliver W. Hill Sr. changed America,” Mr. Marsh, who practiced law with Mr. Hill for decades, said during Tuesday’s virtual meeting.

The emails and meetings also show the continued controversy over replacing the Confederate statue and toward some of the suggestions offered.

One comment and several letters called for the statue of Gen. Lee to remain in the U.S. Capitol and criticized the commission.

Other comments criticized the nomination of Gen. George C. Marshall, another frequently suggested figure, a decorated Army office who served in both World War I and II. His economic recovery plan for Europe after World War II became known as the Marshall Plan. He also was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. Critics said he should be disqualified from nomination because of his support for the military’s policy of racial segregation and because under his leadership as president of the American Red Cross, the organization maintained racial segregation in the blood supply.

The commission will receive written public comments and suggestions through Friday, Nov. 27. Go to www.dhr.virginia.gov/uscapitolcom-mission/.

The Virginia Department of Historic Resources then is to narrow the nominations to five candidates to present to the commission before the end of the year. The commission is to make a recommendation for a replacement to the General Assembly in early 2021.