The Duke Ellington School of the Arts will delay an event renaming its theater after Dave Chappelle until April. The decision from the Northwest D.C. performing arts high school comes after Chappelle’s latest Netflix comedy special, “The Closer,” has been heavily criticized for its transphobic and homophobic jokes.

“As a learning institution that champions inclusivity, diversity, equity, and belonging, we care deeply about protecting the well-being and dignity of every member of our student body, faculty, and community,” the school wrote in a statement on its website Friday. “We also believe moving forward with the event, originally scheduled for November 23, 2021, without first addressing questions and concerns from members of the Ellington community, would be a missed opportunity for a teachable moment.”

The school says it will hold the dedication event on April 22, 2022.

Duke Ellington officials announced plans to name the theater after Chappelle, an alumni of the school, in October, during a screening of “The Closer” in the District.

At the time, Chappelle called the theater dedication “the most significant honor of my life.” Chappelle has been a prominent fundraiser for the school, having personally raised or donated millions of dollars “to address the school’s chronic underfunding,” according to Friday’s statement from Duke Ellington. He has also been an engaged alumni in other ways, by hosting a masterclass with other prominent artists and serving as a commencement speaker.

After the special dropped on Netflix, it was met with numerous critical reviews and denouncement by organizations like like the LGBTQ+ advocacy group GLAAD and the National Black Justice Coalition. Transgender employees and allies at Netflix staged a walkout to protest both the company’s handling of the special and deeper issues over inclusion at the company.

Organizers of the walkout have emphasized that taking down the special was not one of their demands — instead, they said, they wanted the platform to make more space for trans-affirming content — the controversy over the special has added more fuel to longstanding debates about so-called “cancel culture” and how the entertainment industry should handle art that is offensive to marginalized groups. Chappelle has pushed back hard against the response to the special, saying that the framing of the situation in the press has been unfair to him.

In its statement, Duke Ellington said that it was conducting listening sessions with students where it “allowed space for diverse viewpoints.” The school said it has also expanded its social studies curriculum to include “content related to political activism, civic engagement, arts activism, and the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality” in response to the controversy around the special.

Some students at Duke Ellington, which is majority-Black and has a significant number of LGBTQ+ students, have told The Washington Post that the decision to rename the theater after Chappelle has made them uncomfortable. One sophomore told the outlet that Friday’s announcement made them feel “disappointed,” because it seemed like the school was going to move forward with the renaming despite these student concerns.

“We want our students to own their art and understand that being an artist and public figure comes with both responsibility and an increased level of scrutiny,” the statement from the school said. “We recognize that not everyone will accept or welcome a particular artist’s point of view, product or craft, but reject the notion that a ‘cancel culture’ is a healthy or constructive means to teach our students how society should balance creative freedom with protecting the rights and dignity of all its members.”