The results are in and one area school district is one step closer to replacing its Native American mascot.
Voters in the Southern Cayuga Central School District have chosen the Cougars to replace the Chiefs. With 235 votes, Cougars beat out Knights (199 votes) and Red Dragons (188 votes) to become the school district’s new moniker.
The school board will now need to approve the new nickname and then hire a graphic artist to design the new mascot. The district expects to reveal the mascot and logo in the spring.
The process to formally replace the district’s logo and nickname began following the New York State Department of Education’s ruling that schools using Native American imagery must stop doing so by the end of this school year.
A mascot committee was set up, comprised of students, staff, and community members, to determine the criteria for a new mascot. Students, staff, and the community were then able to nominate mascot ideas. From the nominations, the committee eventually narrowed the list of potential candidates to three, the aforementioned Cougars, Knights, and Red Dragons.
Everyone was then invited to vote on their pick of the three with voting ending on November 27. The final tally was done on December 1 to ensure mail-in ballots were received. With all the votes counted, the Cougars came out on top.
The Board of Education would like to thank all those who particpating in the process of choosing a new mascot and logo for the district.
