CAMBRIDGE — Cambridge Central School is starting the new school year as … Cambridge.
“Technically we have no nickname or logo at the moment,” school Superintendent Douglas Silvernell told the school board Thursday night at its regular monthly meeting.
Items with Indian imagery can still be used, according to state Education Commissioner Betty Rosa, but Rosa called on the school to remove the nickname and imagery “as expeditiously as possible,” Silvernell said.
In a 3-2 vote on June 17, the school board retired the controversial Indian nickname and mascot. That decision was reversed by an equally split vote on July 8 after a new member joined the board.
On Aug. 3, eight parents with children living in the district petitioned Rosa to order the school board to stay the July 8 vote and reinstate the June 17 vote, on the grounds that the Indian mascot perpetuated harmful racial stereotypes.
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The school board’s attorney filed a response to the petition on Aug. 13, saying that the reinstatement of the mascot violated no state or federal laws, the state Education Department had expressly left such decisions up to local school boards, and the petitioners had demonstrated no “immediate and irreparable harm” to their children from the mascot. Several of the children named in the petition no longer attend school in the district.
Rosa issued a stay of the July 8 vote on Aug. 25, Silvernell said.
“The district is reviewing with its counsel the feasible removal of the imagery until the commissioner issues a decision,” he said.
In the meantime, the school is required to abide by the June 17 vote.
“We’re trying to work out how to follow the commissioner without spending a ton of money,” Silvernell said. “We cannot make any new purchases with the logo,” for example, school shirts for new teachers, he said.
School board member Shay Price said the school needs more information from the commissioner’s office.
“Don’t take any more actions now,” he told Silvernell.
School board member Dillon Honyoust, who voted with Price and board President Jessica Ziehm to reinstate the Indian, pointed out that taxpayer money has already been spent on many items with the Indian name or imagery.
Resident Rod Wilson noted during public comments that the Indian permeates the school: on its website and Facebook pages, on walls and signs, in newsletters, on student and teacher clothing, on athletic equipment, and in classrooms.
“Have you asked coaches not to refer to teams as ‘Indians’?” Wilson asked.
Rosa’s stay did not give a date for issuing a decision.
In other business:
- High school Principal Carolyn Goss and elementary school Principal Colleen Lester said the first two days of school had gone very well. “I’m so excited to see all the faces back,” Goss said. The school has a universal mask mandate and is following CDC guidelines on spacing, Silvernell said. For some students, Wednesday was their first time in the building in 20 months. Teachers received in-service training on recognizing trauma, he said. “So far, so good,” Silvernell said, though he warned COVID-related mental health problems may surface later.
In response to questions raised about the integrity of local school elections, Silvernell reported on the school’s options. Cambridge has a poll registration system, Silvernell said. Voters register when they arrive to vote.
They attest that they live in the district and are eligible to vote, but are not required to show proof. Election workers could ask for proof of residency but voters would have to be informed beforehand and workers would have to be trained on what proof is acceptable, Silvernell said. Voting would be slower as workers check voters’ information. The other option is personal registration, as is used for municipal elections. Voters would have to register before the election and would sign a poll book when they arrive to vote. People who are registered to vote through the county would not have to do anything differently, but people who are not registered voters would have to come to the school, show proof of residency and register before the election. The school would have to appoint a four-member board to oversee registration. “If you go to personal registration, you can’t go back to poll registration without a general vote,” Silvernell said. The earliest a new voting system could be put in place is 2023, Silvernell said. If the board wants to explore it further, it could discuss the change in executive session in October, hold a public discussion in November and vote in December, he said.
