Manistee Area Public Schools unveiled its new mascot at a school board meeting Wednesday night after a week of voting from the community.
The change will retire the use of the name “Chippewas.”
They will now be called the “Manistee Mariners,” a nod to the community’s maritime heritage built around its deep-water shipping port.
The name Mariners is meant to “invoke ideals of hard work, loyalty, unity and respect.” The other option was “Manistee Whitecaps.”
Superintendent Ron Stoneman said the school district received more than 1,600 votes.
“The student body was really engaged in this process," Stoneman said. "They represent about 43% of the vote, so we’re really excited about their participation and involvement with that.”
A student-led committee helped with the name change effort by gathering more than 300 ideas.
While the name “Chippewas” will be retired, Stoneman said the school will not ban the former mascot.
“So the awards and the medals and so forth that are displayed in school those aren’t banned. We have a lot of uniforms and wearables that the kids wear, that’ll be accepted. This is just moving forward, it’ll take time for the conversion,” he said.
In recent years, only the word "Chippewas" was used. Imagery representing the mascot was phased out in the 1990s.
Stoneman adds that they plan to pursue grants this spring to help with rebranding things like gyms, uniforms and imagery.
The change is official starting next school year.
