Sachem school district signals compliance with mascot ban
The Sachem school district will form a committee to come up with a team name and logo to replace the current "Flaming Arrows." Credit: Anthony Causi
Sachem schools, which missed a state-mandated June deadline to agree to stop using Native American names, logos and mascots, is now taking steps to comply, but like other Long Island districts, is keeping its options open.
According to documents on the district's website, the school board approved a resolution earlier this month to formulate a committee to adopt replacement team names and/or logos for Sachem's current "Flaming Arrows," and also to work to meet a deadline set by the state for the change.
The State Education Department had set June 30 as a deadline for public schools to commit, via resolution, to stop using Native American team names, logos and mascots, but the Sachem school district failed to meet the deadline.
The Amityville and Wantagh school districts, both with "Warriors" as their team names, and Massapequa, known as the "Chiefs," all made last month's resolution deadline while maintaining the right to challenge.
The Sachem resolution, adopted July 12, said the school board reserved the right to initiate a legal challenge to the state commissioner of education regulation.
In addition to the June 30 deadline, in April the state Board of Regents ordered full eradication of indigenous team names and imagery by the end of the 2024-25 school year. Those who miss the second deadline may ask for an extension if they show they have made a good-faith effort to comply.
Names such as "Warriors" and "Chiefs" fall under the ban if they had previously been associated with indigenous imagery, state officials said.
Districts that do not comply will face the removal of school officers and, "as a last resort," the withholding of state aid, according to a state education department spokesman.
