TETON — The Teton School District has replaced its controversial and historic Redskins mascot.
Sports teams at East Idaho’s Teton High School will now be known as the Timberwolves, the district announced Tuesday.
The change followed input from Teton students — and years of debate over use of the nickname. In 2013, local patrons quelled a push to change the mascot, which many view as a racist reference to American Indians. The issue gained traction again last year, with trustees voting in July to drop the mascot.
The district then accepted nominations for a new mascot from the community, formed a committee to review the input and set up a system for students to vote on a replacement four times in recent months.
“Timberwolves beat out 15 other suggestions, with the number of options decreasing in each round of voting,” the district said.
Other nominations ranged from Wildcats and Wolverines to a no-mascot moniker: “We are Teton.”
The Education Foundation of Teton Valley raised about $39,000 to fund the first phase of replacing references of the old mascot throughout the district. That effort will “begin soon,” the district said.
