WEST HARTFORD — Student-led pep squads at both Hall and Conard high schools have decided to drop the Native American-related names that many found offensive.
The change comes after students, staff and parents raised concerns over T-shirts with Native American imagery that were being offered for sale by unsanctioned student groups last week. The school board recommended discontinuing the school logos — which both depicted Indian men wearing feathers — in 2015. The 2016-17 school year started with new logos, but the team names were kept.
Both principals met with their respective pep club leaders and Superintendent Tom Moore said he also met with a group of students after they requested a meeting. Moore said the students had taken orders for the shirts but did not have them made.
Students at Hall High School maintained "The Rez" pep club, short for "The Reservation," which is not a school-sanctioned club, but this week changed the group's name to "Hall Super Fans," until a permanent name can be determined.
On Sunday, the group posted on Twitter: "The shirts with the logo were never sold nor worn by anyone, and we are not selling them."
At the start of this school year, Conard students changed the name of their pep club, "The Tribe," to "The Red C," which is school sanctioned. Recently, the fan section had posted designs of a new shirt with Native American imagery and the words, "Return of the Tribe," said Brian Wilson, student council co-president.
"After much deliberation we have decided to continue as the Red C. Doing so protects the Chieftain name which is bigger than the Tribe," according to the group's Twitter post."Our fan section has always been about supporting our teams, and we want those teams to remain the Chieftains. #chieftainpride"
Representatives from both groups could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
In a letter to the Conard student body Friday morning, Wilson and co-president Mamata Malla asked students to think carefully about buying and selling the T-shirts.
Wilson said in a statement Tuesday that he was pleased with the outcome, and it was "times like these" that Conard students show maturity many think high-schoolers don't have.
"The problem rooted from a lack of understanding," Wilson said. "Now that we are more aware of the policy and what it means, we are all as a school and town more conscience of our actions and are able to prevent problems like this from happening in the future."Leah Kelly, a Conard junior, said she was happy about the name change, but was disappointed that a few of the fan club's more vocal leaders are hesitant to give up everything to do with Native American culture, such as the Chieftain name.
"It's fine to have the pride and to hold on to the tradition of pride for your school, but the fact that it is just this one mascot that they can't let go of is kind of baffling to me and also just frustrating," she said. "It's so hard for people to see that there are things more important in this world than the tradition in one town and in one school."
Judy Wyman Kelly, Leah Kelly's mom and a West Hartford Human Rights Commission member, said it's a good start that the fan club leaders have decided to abide by the school board's guidelines and abandon Native American imagery.
"Native Americans are people, not mascots," she said. "I look forward to the day when everyone accepts this fact."
In a statement, Moore said, "I am glad that at both schools two great student bodies can move forward together, and be more unified than ever. I love being at games at Conard and Hall and seeing the support that these kids exhibit for their friends. I am proud of our students, and I hope that this learning experience helps us to finally put this behind us."
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