COLORADO SPRINGS — Alumni and students of Cheyenne Mountain High School are organizing an effort to remove the school's "Indians" mascot. After voicing their thoughts to the school board Tuesday, the board is considering putting the matter up to a vote.
Larissa Marulli is a D12 alum through and through.
"We moved there when I was five. I went to Skyway, then Pinon, then the junior high and then the high school," Marulli said.
Since she graduated from high school she's kept in touch with classmates through Facebook.
"Back in July an alumni in the Cheyenne Mountain alumni group posted a simple article about Native American mascot images and how we should consider writing to the school board," she said. "And it blew up."
That got her thinking.
"In high school, I don't think any of us really had a problem with it," Marulli said. "But we're all adults now and obviously times are changing."
That's why she and other alumni formed the group 'Not our Mascot.'
"A group of us had the time and reached out to all these different organizations to see what they thought," she said. "And the feeling was very negative."
After discussing with various indigenous groups, 'Not Our Mascot' presented the school a 46-page report detailing why they believe the "Indians" mascot should go.
"I guess the next step would be for the board to take a vote," Marulli said.
At Monday's D12 school board meeting, dozens of people spoke out in favor of changing the mascot.
Only one person, a 1970s Cheyenne Mountain alumnus, spoke in favor of keeping the mascot.
In the end, school board members said they are open to taking it to a vote among themselves.
"I would like to suggest we undertake examining this issue in the resolution process," School Board President Monica Peloso said.
As of Monday there was no formal resolution drafted yet. Peloso recommended discussing it further at the board's September work session, eyeing November as a possible time for a vote.
