Kids OK with losing logo
Daily News Transcript
Norwood, MA
May 2, 2007
By Patrick Anderson
DAILY NEWS STAFF
DEDHAM - Alumni, teachers and the public will join students to decide whether Marauders will remain the Dedham High School team nickname, Principal Alan Winrow said yesterday.
Students interviewed said they understand why the school is jettisoning the logo - an Indian with a Mohawk hairstyle - but a majority said they favor keeping the school nickname.
"The name has been here too long to change it now," track team member and senior Derek Aitchison said.
Winrow said the school would hold public hearings on the Marauders name later in the month to try to gauge the will of the school and town.
If opinion clearly favors keeping the name, Winrow said, a contest sponsored by the Boosters Club to find a new complementary logo would begin. If sentiment leans toward change, a name search would be needed before the logo contest can start.
Winrow said the process would be deliberate and may not be completed before the end of the school year.
The school administration and Boosters had been discussing changing the nickname and mascot for months and yesterday announced the Indian logo would be eliminated.
"First we have to decide on retention of the name," Winrow said. "We are going to solicit imput and hopefully bring it to closure by next year."
Winrow said he had not yet discussed a timetable or the cost of removing images of the Native American head on school property.
"We have not gotten down to costs yet," Winrow said. "The logo is not around the school a whole lot, so we don't think it will be too difficult."
The logo is most prominently displayed on the gold wooden sign in front of the building and on the wall of the gymnasium.
Winrow said the Indian logo had been removed from team uniforms more than five years ago, so there would be no new uniform costs unless the name Marauder is changed. He said he did not know exactly how many uniforms were adorned with the word Marauders, but that the name change would be more expensive than the logo change.
Knowing they will have the most influence on the decision, students yesterday said the team name debate was a hot topic in school.
"We had a discussion about it in history class today," said sophomore Jessica MacLean. "Most people think we should keep the name, but I think if anyone is offended by it we should change it."
School officials and boosters have said no Native American groups have complained about the logo, but some out-of-towners have said it is poor taste.
Freshman Kathy Guerrier said there is no point changing the name but is happy about the demise of the logo.
"It's really ugly," she said.
Daily News staff writer Patrick Anderson can be reached at 781-433-8336 or by e-mail at panderso@cnc.com.