Manchester High School Gets A New Nickname

MANCHESTER, CT — Manchester High School has a new nickname — the Red Hawks. The board of education made it official Tuesday in a unanimous vote to replace the decades-old "Indians" monicker.

The vote ended a lengthy debate that included a charge by student activists, spurred by a study and subsequent report by the Hartford-based RE-Center, in conjunction with the Manchester school system, that recommended that Manchester High change its nickname through a process involving the school community.

The study, called an Equity-Informed School Climate Assessment, "aims to replace or enhance traditional school climate surveys with a robust assessment of school systems through an equity lens."

RE·Center developed the first district-wide E.I.S.C.A. in collaboration with Manchester Public Schools with support from EdChange and funding from the Willian Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund.

The mascot had been used since 1949.

The logo featuring a block-letter M inside a circle adorned with feathers had already evolved into mostly block lettering logos at MHS. But an Indian head logo has been clearly visible on the side of the school.

Changing the mascot was one of more than 50 recommendations regarding equity and "inclusion issues" in the report.