MELROSE — On Thursday, February 17, the School Committee will hold a public hearing and allow feedback on a proposal to change the name and logo of the teams and extracurricular clubs at Melrose High.
The hearing will begin at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chamber at Melrose City Hall. All interested persons will be given an opportunity to be heard.
In a release, Supt. of Schools Dr. Julie Kukenberger wrote, “At this time, the School Committee plans to continue to meet in person in the Council Chamber of City Hall. As allowed by the “Act Extending Certain COVID-19 Measures Adopted during the State of Emergency,” if needed, due to the rapidly changing public health situation, this meeting may be moved to the WebEx platform. A public access link will be posted if/when it is needed. If the School Committee and Superintendent meet in-person in the Council Chamber of City Hall the meeting will be recorded. The public is allowed to attend in-person or watch the meeting live on local cable station MMTV (Channels 3, 15, and 22 on the Comcast or Channels 37, 38, and 39 on Verizon).
“For the Public Hearing, members of the public may provide comment in person or remotely via the WebEx audio feature. If you would like to make a public comment remotely, please email School Committee Chair Jennifer McAndrew (jmcandrew@cityofmelrose.org) by 5:00 pm on Thursday, February 17, 2022 and a WebEx audio link will be provided.”
Surveys are currently available to get a sense of which names and logos people like. The Melrose High Mascot/Nickname Steering Committee has compiled some ideas and is looking for feedback until Feb. 9.
The choices include the Melrose Express (connected to the city’s history of trains); the Highlanders (from the city being named after a town in Scotland); the Red & White; the Melrose Red Hawks (red-tailed hawks are native to the city and are often seen flying overhead); and the Trailblazers (tied to the city’s history with the Middlesex Fells Reservation).
A message from the steering committee accompanying the survey states that “Our potential new mascot will: have a connection to Melrose, the community, and its history; instill pride in the student body; work equally well for all school co-curricular activities; represent positive qualities, ideals, or associations; and be one that people can feel good about.
School colors of red and white will remain.
The suggestions on the form were compiled from feedback received from surveys sent out to the school and greater Melrose community in the fall. The MHS Mascot & Nickname Committee which is comprised of students, staff and community members, has been working on developing recommendations to pass along to the Melrose School Committee for a final decision.