Acton-Boxborough Schools Retire 'Colonial' Mascot

ACTON, MA — The Acton-Boxborough Regional School Committee unanimously voted on Thursday to retires the district's "Colonial" mascot.

The decision comes after a month of discussion spurred by a student petition and presentation to the School Committee. The petition, created by student group Acton-Boxborough Students for Equity and Justice, earned over 2,000 signatures. The students said the mascot was divisive and explained how colonialism was tied and often rooted in racism and oppression.

A rival petition briefly circulated and gained over 2,00 signatures, but the students who put together the opposing petition did not present it to the School Committee.

In late September, the School Committee asked the community to voice its opinion on the subject and a letter was sent soliciting responses. The district received 353 responses. Of the 353 who responded, 144 opposed retiring the mascot and 195 agreed with retiring the mascot. There 14 people who responded as undecided.

The official motion to retire the mascot reads:

"We move to retire the AB Colonial mascot, recognizing that there are many positive attributes of our town’s history that we associate with the students of the Acton-Boxborough School District, with the understanding that programs and new purchases made by the district will no longer bear the name Colonials. The changes to existing capital items such as uniforms, scoreboards and other items will be changed as time and funding permits."