By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays USD 489 superintendent announced at a meeting Wednesday night he intends to recommend to the school board that Hays High keeps the Indian as its mascot.
A discussion has been ongoing for months on the mascot, which included a public meeting, committee meetings and a community survey.
The discussion was prompted by the passage of a bond that will include the construction of a new high school.
Although the discussions have included some vocal residents who wanted to eliminate the Indian mascot, citing the mascot as hurtful and racist, 90 percent of people who responded to the community survey said they wanted to retain the high school's Indian mascot.
"I've learned through this process that there's a tremendous amount of pride in this community with the Hays Indian," Ron Wilson, superintendent, said. "It's overwhelming in support of being a Hays Indian.
"I've also learned there are things that are offensive in our imagery in the way we sometimes portray the Indian mascot. I think this has been great conversation and it has allowed us to establish what an Indian is or shouldn't be."
The Kansas Legislature would need to take action to mandate the mascot changes, and Wilson said the Legislature is considering much more significant legislation on public schools than mascots at this time.
Multiple critics of the Indian mascot said they thought the Indian head with the headdress is inappropriate.
Tony Crough, HHS football coach, said he thinks the HHS faculty want a mascot they and the students can be proud of.
"If we're going to be the Indians, we need to be able to be proud to be the Indians," he said, "not necessarily the offensive things like the headdress. If we say we're going to be proud and rally behind the Indians, we don't not want to be able to put 'Indians' on the shirt. Let's not sit on the fence."
Wednesday, members of the rebranding committee also discussed the need to be more consistent with the images and colors used in Hays High branding.
Wilson said the agenda for the next school board meeting had not been set as of Wednesday night. However, he could bring his recommendation to the school board as soon as the Monday meeting.
A vote would not be necessary if the board agrees to keep the mascot as it is. All members of the school board, except Tammy Wellbrock, were at the rebranding committee meeting Wednesday night.
Board member Meagan Zampieri-Lillpopp has been a vocal opponent of the Indian mascot. She has repeatedly said she thinks the Indian mascot is hurtful to Native Americans
During the meeting and before Wilson's announcement she said of the mascot, "I think [always] in my life if someone said 'You're hurting us,' that I stopped hurting them."
Wilson said he anticipates the district will form a group to further evaluate the high school and middle school branding. This would include establishing more consistent logos and color schemes.
The rebranding committee also has discussed extending the maroon and gold as well as the Indian mascot to the middle school. Under the bond, the current high school will be remodeled into a middle school.
At the very least, carrying the mascots through both schools would negate the need to pull up the gym floor and repaint other areas of the school, said Bruce Rupp, HMS assistant principal and athletic director.
"If it's good enough for the high school, it's good enough for the middle school," Tom Albers, HMS principal, said of the Indian mascot.
Craig Pallister, school board president and former HMS principal, said he would like to see more discussion around the HMS mascot, which is now the Falcons.