What’s in a name?
Florence gets the willies about losing ‘Wildcats’
Staff writer
Packing a classic Florence gathering place in Town and Country Café, residents voiced concerns Thursday regarding the school district’s proposed mascot change, which would see the middle school mascot change from “Wildcats” to “Warriors.”
Superintendent Justin Wasmuth and middle school Principal Kelsey Metro led the meeting, attended by 36. Board member Jillian Edmundson and board president Nick Kraus also attended.
Metro introduced herself as “the principal of Marion Middle School,” at which Linda Allison, a former teacher in the Florence school system, jumped out of her chair.
“Marion–Florence Middle School,” she said.
It was a fitting start, as the residents’ main complaint was that Florence often has been forgotten by the district, and the proposed mascot change is yet another instance.
“As a Florence kid, you already knew you were looked down upon,” Marrisa Bowman said. “To take away the one symbol that we’ve got left is pretty harsh. … You’re telling those Florence kids, or any child that comes from Florence, they don’t matter.”
Multiple citizens pointed out the school district often is referred to as “Marion,” though its official name is “Marion–Florence.”
Other hyphenated districts, such as Peabody–Burns and Canton–Galva, make a point to use both names, although Durham-Hillsboro-Lehigh does not, and some — like Centre, Remington, and Circle — avoid town names altogether.
Marion’s school buildings do not have the word “Florence” on their inscriptions. But that wasn’t the only concern voiced.
Sharon Omstead said the school did not provide buses for Florence kids to go to the Old Settlers Day parade in Marion but does provide buses for Marion kids to go to Florence for its Labor Day celebration.
There is a lack of buses to Florence in general, Omstead said.
“I had five kids go through the school system,” she said. “None of them have been dropped off back at Florence after sporting events. They’re not provided with extracurricular buses whatsoever.”
Residents rejected Metro’s notion that standardizing the Warrior name would save parents money on apparel sales.
“How many kids are going to stay the same [size] when you’re in sixth grade all the way through high school?” Mark Slater said.
Melissa Parmley added: “We’re going to buy new shirts every year, whether they say Wildcats, Warriors, or Bumblebees.”
Another argument put forward by the proponents of the change is that having one mascot would bolster unity between middle and high school.
Florence residents argued that unity could be achieved through other means.
Erika Smalley said that conducting half of school board meetings in Florence would be an easy step to build unity.
Slater said teachers might inform middle schoolers of the old Florence school system and explain that is where the Wildcat name came from.
“You guys need to be the ones lecturing the kids: ‘We are the Wildcats. We are Marion–Florence,’” he said.
Josh Tajchman questioned the idea that one should even try to unify different age groups in such a deliberate manner.
“High schoolers are high schoolers, and middle schoolers need to be middle schoolers,” he said. “You can’t force them to be together.”
Parmley summed up public sentiment:
“You talk about unifying,” she said. “Taking Florence out is not unifying in any way.”
Bob Gale, a former mayor of Florence, had written out a speech.
In his remarks, he said that when Florence High was closed on state orders in 1971, officials “took the trophies and the trophy cabinets, and pitched them all in the Dumpster out here.”
He said this was one of multiple moves that “hurt” Florence residents.
Greg Bowman noted that the “Warrior” mascot also is used by Peabody–Burns and Berean Academy and asked the school board to consider the legacy that banning the Wildcat name could have on the community.
“If you guys do move forward with this, that is on you,” he said. “You have to take responsibility — as the school board, as principals, as the superintendent — for being the ones that got rid of it.”
Wasmuth and Metro thanked attendees and invited the community to attend Tuesday’s school board meeting.