Dartmouth’s Equality and Diversity Subcommittee has taken steps in tackling the potential elimination of the high school's Indian logo, including hosting a possible forum and expert speakers to provide insight on the issue.

 At a May 25 meeting, Subcommittee Chair Dr. Shannon Jenkins said that while members will also look at other issues related to diversity and inclusion, they should tackle the mascot issue first.

“It’s a conversation a lot of people want to have right now,’’ she said, noting that he School Committee wants the mascot issue to be “central’’ to the subcommittee’s mission

The logo issue has come up repeatedly in recent years, with sports teams and brands nationwide reexamining their minority representation and bills prohibiting Native American mascots for public schools introduced in the state legislature last year.

In August 2020, officials set up the subcommittee to look into the logo — and diversity issues in the Dartmouth Public Schools in general — after previously rejecting the move in October 2019.

“I don’t think any work that this committee can do will move us forward if we don’t honestly and authentically address the issue of the mascot,’’ High School Principal Ross Thibault said.

Jenkins noted that Dartmouth Democratic Town Committee Chair James Griffith offered his committee’s services to host a public forum on the mascot topic. But subcommittee members preferred to host it themselves, saying they appreciated the offer but wanted to keep political parties out of the discussion. 

Before a forum can happen, though, subcommittee members said they want to hear at upcoming meetings from individuals who have studied the issue and from a panel of Native American representatives presenting their perspectives

Jenkins said she heard from two potential speakers: Dartmouth High graduate and Youth Commission Chair Kempton Campell, who is studying the issue of mascots, and Springfield College Professor Dr. Laurel Davis-Delano, who has spoken of the damaging impact these mascots can have on Native American communities. 

The Chair noted that by having those two speakers, along with hearing from a current Dartmouth High School student who is also researching the topic, they would help subcommittee members learn more.

 The subcommittee also hopes to hear from a panel of Native American presenters to offer their perspectives, and “not just one or two to engage in tokenism,’’ Jenkins said. 

 She added that also wants to share information both with the subcommittee and with the general public on resources to help educate and inform the decision. 

 The subcommittee's next meeting is set for June 22.