(AP) — A new Omaha public middle school opening later this month will bear the name a Tuskegee Airman who died during World War II.

Omaha Public Schools formally dedicated Alfonza W. Davis Middle School in northwest Omaha on Friday night. Classes start Aug. 14.

Davis was born in Pensacola, Fla., in August 1919 before his family moved to Omaha when he was a baby. He attended Omaha public schools and graduated valedictorian from the now-closed Omaha Technical High School in March 1937.

Davis later attended Omaha University, now the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and Creighton University.

He was 25 when his plane disappeared over Italy on Oct. 29, 1944. He received the Purple Heart, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Distinguished Unit Citation.