North Hills School District to vote on Indian nickname 'compromise' at next meeting

Compromise is the name of the game when it comes to North Hills School District and its Indian mascot.

On Sept. 15, the school board presented a resolution that allows for the discontinuation of the current Indian logo, but the continuing use of the name “Indians’ as the identifier for athletic teams.

It is slated for a vote at the Oct. 6 meeting.

A Town Hall in June and an online survey for those who could not attend the town hall provided a chance for residents, alumni and students to share their opinions on the subject of the current mascot and the Indian logo.

School board president Allison Mathis said that during the town hall meeting a small majority leaned towards changing the mascot, but that online submissions did not prefer the change.

“Community feedback is important,” Mathis said during the Sept. 15 meeting, calling the resolution a “compromise.”

The resolution allows the replacement of the existing Indian logo “through the normal replacement cycle using established district logos and images,” which the board hopes will help contain the costs. If the board chose to remove the logo immediately, the cost to the district was estimated to reach $500,000.

During the public comment section of the meeting, two residents said that the district needed to remove any reference to the Indian name and image. Marlene Ozel and Valerie Aquila said that the compromise was too much and voiced disappointment in the board only partially addressing the problem.

Board members Deanna Philpott and Elizabeth Nease both voiced their concerns regarding the resolution, with Philpott stating that she would prefer the full removal of any Indian reference while Nease said that as an alumni and lifetime resident, she feels the mascot is important and should remain along with the Indian name.

The resolution was carried over to the Oct. 6 meeting with a passing vote of 7-2, with Philpott and Nease being the two who voted against.