It's not football or hockey that's driving a fierce rivalry between two high schools in Winnipeg's St. James area — rather, it's what to name the building when the two schools amalgamate next year.

Silver Heights Collegiate will close permanently at the end of the school year. As a result, about 800 Silver Heights students will join about 400 Sturgeon Creek Collegiate students in a new building at the site of Sturgeon Creek.

The schools are amalgamating because the student population in the St. James neighbourhood is dropping. The building is set to open next summer.

Since the building is essentially a new school, officials with the St. James-Assiniboia School Division are looking for a new name for the school.

"I think it's going to cause a lot of controversy between people, because Sturgeon's going to want to keep their name, but we're going to want to keep our name," Silver Heights student Melanie Base said.

Silver Heights student Zach Blady-Bludeau and some of his fellow students are collecting signatures to have the new building named Silver Heights. The petition has about 200 names so far.

"It was important for me and my friends to do it, because there's a lot of history behind this school," Blady-Bludeau said.

Some Silver Heights students say they should be allowed to bring their name with them, since Sturgeon Creek students won't have to move.

But the idea of bringing the Silver Heights name over didn't sit well with Sturgeon Creek student Dustin Ahmo.

"They're coming here, and they think they can practically, like, take over our school and take over the name and everything," Ahmo said.

Moreover, some other Silver Heights students don't want to get off on the wrong foot with their new classmates at Sturgeon Creek.

A naming committee has been struck to solicit and look at submissions. It will make its recommendations in the next couple of weeks.

The school board will have the final decision. But school officials said the students' petition won't necessarily sway their decision one way or the other.

"All we really would be doing as this committee is just stacking up the submissions and the tallest ones would win," Sturgeon Creek principal Brent Corrigan on Thursday.