The Hays CISD administration announced July 6 that it will recommend HCISD board members vote in favor of changing the Rebel mascot at Hays High School following survey results from students and teachers.
During the week of June 29, HCISD sent over 2,000 invitations to students and teachers to participate in a survey created by the district’s administration and to indicate their comfort level with the Rebel mascot. Their responses were recorded on a seven-point scale, from very uncomfortable to very comfortable, according to a press release sent by the district.
Feedback obtained by over 1,200 survey responses showed that 71.91% of 146 teachers felt little to no comfort with the school’s mascot. Similarly, 59.37% of 1,152 students felt uncomfortable with the Rebel mascot.
“When more than a quarter of the students, and nearly a third of the teachers and staff members, are very uncomfortable with the current mascot; that mascot fails in its objective. When a mascot mires the school in political controversy and pits students, families, and community members against each other—it is time to change,” the district said in a statement.
