Mahopac Central School District is a school district headquartered in Mahopac, New York.
 | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (January 2020) |
Circa 2014 superintendent Thomas J. Manko left his position. The Mahopac school board selected Forest City Regional School District superintendent John Kopicki as the successor, but Kopicki chose not to take the position. [1]
Anthony DiCarlo became the superintendent in 2018. [2] He formerly served as a principal in the New Rochelle School District. [3]
At a high school basketball game, Mahopac students and spectators were accused of verbally attacking basketball players from Mount Vernon, New York, with "racial taunts of an abhorrent nature." [4] After eventually losing the game, Mahopac students then took to Twitter to continue the harassment, specifically focusing their attacks towards African-American students. Once word began to spread of the incident, students from other school districts began to support the statements made by Mount Vernon, citing similar issues with Mahopac students. [5] Upon investigation, 3 Mahopac students were suspended. [6] As a result of the incident, Mahopac's varsity basketball coach at the time, Kevin Downes, stepped down from his position. [7]
Similar to the incident in 2014, Mahopac High School junior varsity lacrosse players were accused of racist behaviors during a game against the team from New Rochelle, New York. A parent of a New Rochelle athlete reported that Mahopac athletes referred to the New Rochelle athletes as "[expletive] Mexicans" and that they refused to shake hands with African-American athletes. [8] Mahopac's Superintendent, Anthony DiCarlo, immediately got in touch with New Rochelle administrators about the incident, responding to the accusations by stating, "We must be ever-vigilant when confronting behavior that runs counter to expected norms...Anyone found responsible will be held accountable in accordance with district policies and procedures." However, no disciplinary action was taken after extensive reviews by both school districts found the reports to be unfounded.
In October 2019, Daniel Ehrenpreis, a 2012 Mahopac alumnus and Johns Hopkins University public health graduate, began a petition seeking to retire the Mahopac School District's "Indian" mascot. Current Mahopac High School students and alumni of subsequently signed in support. However, within days, a counter-petition circulated underscoring the significance of the mascot, originally selected to honor the Mahopac band of the Wappinger people native to the community. [9]
After listening to arguments from both sides, the school district chose to keep the mascot, stating that they "determined that the Mahopac Indian was an appropriate symbol of pride, as it honored the Algonquin Indians who inhabited Mahopac long before any of us." [10]
The matter was reopened in June 2020, after students again petitioned the school district to not only retire the mascot but also address ongoing racial issues prevalent in the schools. On June 18, several residents sought to express concerns pertaining to the school mascot during a virtual school board meeting. However, despite submitting questions before the deadline, the topic was never brought up by either school officials or board members. [11]
District Superintendent Anthony DiCarlo subsequently posted a letter expressing the board's position:
"The Board appreciates the outreach, research, and advocacy that Mr. Ehrenpreis has conducted with regard to the issue of the District's mascot.
The District met with Mr. Ehrenpreis (via skype) in December 2019, listened to his concerns, and considered the facts and argument that he (and his colleagues) had advanced regarding their desire to change the mascot.
The District then conducted its own historical investigation into the origins of the mascot.
The first inhabitants of the land that is today Mahopac were members of the Algonquin people. In addition, the District had previously been advised by the town historian that descendants of the Algonquin people in fact appreciated and took great pride in the District using the nickname and did not want the District to abandon its use.
The District ultimately determined that it would, accordingly, maintain the mascot." [11]
“The Indians mascot and logo that have been fixtures in the Mahopac School District for decades will soon be eliminated. During a Jan. 17 Board of Education work session, Superintendent of Schools Christine Tona unveiled a plan for the district to choose a new mascot name by June 30, with full implementation no later than June 30, 2025.
“While I have not been in the Mahopac community for very long, I know that the Mahopac Indians mascot has been a longstanding tradition used to recognize the indigenous people who have lived in our beautiful community long before all of us,” Tona stated.
“Our objective is to select a new mascot that embodies the Mahopac spirit, provides school district recognition, and invokes pride and enthusiasm,” she added.
The Mahopac School District is one of about 2,000 nationwide that still use a Native American as a mascot, but state officials have threatened to withhold state aid for any that may be in “willful violation” of The Dignity For All Students Act.” About 60 districts in New York still use a Native American mascot or logo.”
https://www.theexaminernews.com/plans-unveiled-to-change-indians-school-mascot-in-mahopac/
Steeleville is a village in Randolph County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,083 at the 2010 census.
Carmel is a town in Putnam County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the town had a population of 33,576.
Mahopac is a hamlet in the town of Carmel in Putnam County, New York, United States. Also known as Lake Mahopac, the exurb is located some 47 miles (76 km) north of New York City, on US Route 6 at the county's southern central border with Westchester County. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,933.
The Pascack Valley Regional High School District is a regional public high school district encompassing students from four communities in the Pascack Valley region of Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Hillsdale, Montvale, River Vale and Woodcliff Lake.
Chief Illiniwek was the mascot of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), associated with the university's intercollegiate athletic programs, from October 30, 1926, to February 21, 2007. Chief Illiniwek was portrayed by a student to represent the Illiniwek, the state's namesake, although the regalia worn was from the Sioux. The student portraying Chief Illiniwek performed during halftime of Illinois football and basketball games, as well as during women's volleyball matches.
Pascack Valley High School (PVHS) is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school located in Hillsdale in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades as one of two secondary schools in the Pascack Valley Regional High School District. Pascack Valley High School serves the residents of both Hillsdale and neighboring River Vale, while its counterpart Pascack Hills High School serves the communities of Woodcliff Lake and Montvale. As part of its 1:1 eLearning Initiative, the school has provided a laptop to every student, teacher, and administrator for educational use.
Algonquin Regional High School is a public high school located in Northborough, Massachusetts, United States. The school serves the students of the Northborough-Southborough Regional School District (NSRSD) comprising both Northborough and neighboring Southborough.
Huntley High School is a public high school in Huntley, Illinois, United States. The catchment area includes Consolidated School District 158, which includes all of Huntley as well as parts of Lake in the Hills, Algonquin, and other surrounding communities and rural areas.
John Jay High School is a public high school located in Lewisboro, New York. It is the only high school in the Katonah-Lewisboro School District. The school, which opened in 1956, is named after John Jay, a Founding Father of the United States, and first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, who lived nearby. Over the years, the school former mascot, the Indians, had been controversial, and it was decided in November 2019 to retire the mascot in favor of a new one. In 2020, the school announced that their new mascot would be the Wolves, a nod to the nearby Wolf Conservation Center.
South San Antonio Independent School District is a public school district based in San Antonio, Texas (USA). The district serves southern and southwestern portions of the city. For the school year (2022-2023) the district served 7,872 students in 18 schools. This district was the 107th-largest by enrollment in the state of Texas.
Roy C. Ketcham High School, more informally Ketcham High School or RCK, is a public secondary school under jurisdiction of the Wappingers Central School District. Located in Wappingers Falls, New York, United States, the school serves approximately 1,600 students in grades nine through twelve residing in the southwest of Dutchess County. Their mascot is the Ketcham Storm.
Poolesville High School is a public magnet high school located in Poolesville, Maryland, United States. It is part of the Montgomery County Public Schools system. It is the only all-magnet high school in Montgomery County, although Montgomery Blair High School also has a magnet program.
Sequoyah High School is a Native American boarding school serving students in grades 7 through 12, who are members of a federally recognized Native American tribe. The school is located in Park Hill, Oklahoma, with a Tahlequah post office address, and is a Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) grant school operated by the Cherokee Nation.
Wentzville Holt High School is the oldest of the four high schools in the Wentzville R-IV School District and second oldest high school in St. Charles County, Missouri. With a 2020-21 enrollment of 1,934, Holt is the largest high school in St. Charles County. Although officially known as Emil E. Holt Senior High School since 1969, it was generally known only as Wentzville High School until 2000, when a renewed emphasis was placed on the "Holt" name in preparation for the addition of a second high school in the district.
Westford Academy is the public high school for the town of Westford, Massachusetts, United States. It was incorporated in 1792 and is one of the oldest public high schools in the United States.
North Brookfield High School is a public high school in North Brookfield, Massachusetts, United States. The school serves the residents of North Brookfield exclusively, making it one of the smallest high schools in the region. Recently, a new building was built next to the old one. The construction was completed in 2006. NBHS was founded in 1857, making 2007 its 150th anniversary.
Coronado Unified School District (CUSD) is the public school district for the city of Coronado in San Diego County, California. It includes one high schools, one middle school, and two elementary schools as well as several specialized and unconventional schools. It is governed by a five-member elected board.
Warwick High School is a public secondary school in the Warwick School District located in Lititz, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States.
Sports teams named Redskins are part of the larger controversy regarding the use of Native American names, images and symbols by non-native sports teams. Teams of this name have received particular public attention because the term redskin is now generally regarded as disparaging and offensive.