Port Huron schools reviewing Native American mascots
Port Huron Area Schools will be reviewing indigenous imagery from three schools in its district.
Superintendent Theodore Kerhoulas told the Board of Education the district is working with the Blue Water Indigenous Alliance to discuss the mascots from Port Huron High School, Michigamme Elementary and Roosevelt Elementary.
“We’ve done some work behind the scenes, changing some of the symbols to be less offensive to our indigenous community, but we have found that there is still work to do,” Kerhoulas said.
The Native American mascots and imagery being reviewed are the "Big Reds" mascot from Port Huron High School, the "Little Chiefs" from Michigamme Elementary and the "Little Reds" from Roosevelt Elementary.
The school board did not make a motion on the mascot issue and is expected to next discuss the issue at its meeting on Sept. 19.
In recent years, school districts across the United States have been moving away using Native American imagery. This comes as a response to society’s changed perception of Native American mascots.
The Sandusky Community Schools Board of Education voted in July to pause spending on the replacement of its Redskins mascot and officials acknowledged it's possible the district may begin the school year without a replacement.
The board applied for a grant from the Michigan Native American Heritage Fund to help cover expenses. However, the agency did not accept the grant application.
The school requested $160,000 in its grant application, which is amount officials estimate it will cost to rebrand.
Four Michigan schools shared most of $480,000 available this year from the Michigan Native American Heritage Fund.
The Native American Heritage Fund in June that it would grant a portion of $480,000 to four school districts: Chippewa Hills School District in Mecosta County, Hartford Public Schools in Van Buren County, Saranac Community Schools in Ionia County and the Lansing School District for Sexton High School’s Redskins mascot.
Chippewa Hills will receive $52,371, Hartford will get $134,249, Lansing will receive $87,500 and Saranac will get $139,319. The rest of the $480,000 went to organizations for other indigenous-related education projects. The fund's board decided the grants, and priority was given to the mascot projects, according to a news release.
In April, Sandusky voted to retire its Redskins mascot to acknowledge the changed perception of Native American mascot imagery.
Contact McKenna Golat at mgolat@gannett.com or (810) 292-0122.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Port Huron Area Schools reviewing Native American mascots
