By Melanie Petrucci, Senior Community Reporter
Shrewsbury – A Shrewsbury High School (SHS) student has asked the School Committee to consider changing its mascot’s name.
Chair Sandra Fryc told the Committee at its Nov. 4 meeting that Louisa Scott, a junior at SHS, has asked that the mascot’s name be changed from the Colonial.
“The petition raises concerns about the negative connotations that may apply to some in the community,” Fryc noted.
She said that she, along with fellow committee member Jon Wensky, School Superintendent Dr. Joseph Sawyer, Principal Todd Bazydlo, Athletic Director Jay Costa met with Louisa and several other students on Oct. 28.
“We wanted to hear directly from them what their thoughts were, where they thought this should go, what tasks they were looking for the School Committee to take,” she continued. “After discussing this further with Dr. Sawyer I’ve tasked him with creating a ‘Mascot Ad Hoc Study Group’ and they will be charged with reviewing the petition, studying the history of the Mascot use for SHS and how the term has been defined historically…”
The group will also solicit public feedback regarding how the mascot is perceived presently and consider the pros and the cons, logistics and financial impacts of changing the name.
The group will then present their recommendations to the School Committee whether to change the mascot’s name. It will consist of three SHS student representatives, three SHS faculty, three SHS parents, three SHS alumni and three SHS administrators including Bazydlo and Costa.
The timeline is to have the group formed by the end of November, and start to meet in December with recommendations made to the School Committee no later to March 21, 2021.
Sawyer said that he looked forward to working with the group and to study the issue and look at it from a variety of perspectives.
