Officials with the William S. Hart Union High School District are set to begin discussing the possibility of changing the mascot of Hart High School in a “study session” for the governing board after students gathered over 18,000 signatures in a petition to retire the “outdated and offensive Indian mascot.”
On Wednesday, Hart District Superintendent Mike Kuhlman announced that the district’s governing board is scheduled to host a “study session” to start a conversation about changing Hart High’s Indian mascot, which students have said is “outdated.”
“This is not a meeting where action will be taken,” Kuhlman said. “It’s really time set aside for the board to understand an important issue.”
The move comes after an online petition was created back in June of 2020 to urge Hart High School and district staff to retire the school’s “outdated and offensive Indian mascot.”
“I truly believe that now is an appropriate time to consider making this change,” wrote Julia Estrada, a Hart High 2020 graduate, at the time. “Given that we are amidst a shift in history where young people are challenging the deep-rooted racism found in everyday society.”
The petition has since garnered over 18,000 signatures, attracting the attention of district officials and prompting a response from Hart High principal Jason d’Autremont.
“I appreciate your focus on cultural sensitivity,” d’Autremont wrote to Estrada. “It’s something that all of us are especially attentive to – given the national (and international) call for social justice. As Principal, it’s always been important to me to ensure that our school (and our students) represent our community with the utmost dignity and respect.”
See Related: Hart High Principal Responds To Student Call For Retiring ‘Outdated’ Indian Mascot
While d’Autremont wanted to assure Estrada that he, along with officials from the school, were listening, he also expressed that the school’s primary focus was on getting students back into the classroom.
“My team and I are currently consumed with working out how to do this in light of the ever-changing restrictions associated with the COVID shutdowns,” he wrote. “This is not an excuse, but rather a transparent admission that we are working as hard as we can to get this piece in place first.”
The meeting is scheduled for 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 8, and is intended to help the district’s governing board “learn about the history of the Hart High School mascot and to understand the issues that are being raised.”
“We believe the time has come for students, staff and families to come together to thoughtfully and respectfully examine this question as a community,” Kuhlman said. “We think here in the Hart District (that) when we confront difficult, challenging but important issues, we’re not going to run from them. We’re going to face them, and as a community I think we can do so in a manner that is mutually supportive of one another.”
Video feed of the meeting is set to be broadcast live on YouTube for residents to see, and will remain accessible for a period of time to “ensure that everyone who is interested has the chance to publicly view the conversation.”
Kuhlman also said that the district plans to schedule additional opportunities for community input and participation in the coming weeks and months.
The meeting can be viewed here at 8 a.m. Tuesday.
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