South Burlington Rebels become Wolves

Correction/clarification: The federal policy for equity in sports is Title IX.

SOUTH BURLINGTON - Thursday marked the last day of classes at the high school and the first day Wolves prowled the corridors.

The School Board approved the new mascot name on Wednesday following a formal request by selection committee members.

"I think it's going to be a great choice," High School Principal Pat Burke said after the decision. "I'm not surprised that there was student support for a mascot with such powerful imagery."

South Burlington High School teacher Richard Wise who presented the selection committee to the School Board said that the challenge for the community will be respecting the past while building upon a vision for the future.

RELATED:

• Do the Rebels have a cause? They say yes.
• South Burlington School Budget passes on try No. 3
• Rebel name debate goes back decades

The process of choosing a mascot in the schools was initiated after the School Board voted unanimously in February to drop the Rebel name because the original ties to Confederate imagery did not unify the whole student body.

The backlash from that decision inspired a politically charged group of residents to work to defeat the school budget twice while filing a petition to take the mascot name to a community vote. The petition failed to make it past the School Board and students from fifth through 12th grade chose Wolves for their mascot from 70 possible choices.

As for sports shirts next year, Burke says all uniforms for winter, fall and spring sports will say South Burlington. 

"We have to make sure we are thrifty," Burke said explaining uniforms are typically reused for over five years. 

Every year  money is allotted to purchase uniforms for a five-year cycle, but no extra money was given this year, according to district documents.

Burke says he and others will work to ensure all uniforms are of equal quality according to Title IX.

Local design firm Select Design is guiding a group of high school design students to create a logo, which should be available by mid-July, according to Burke.

Contact Nicole Higgins DeSmet at ndesmet@freepressmedia.com or 802-660-1845. Follow her on Twitter @NicoleHDeSmet.