Coachella Valley High School’s New Mascot Official

Coachella Valley High School has a new mascot, ending months of criticism from the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee over the old one, which was called “stereotypical.”

District officials along with a representative from the Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee signed off Friday on the changes to the school’s mascot, logo, and name.

“It feels really great to know that we can move forward as a school community, to say that we did the right thing in this case,” said Superintendent Dr. Darryl Adams of the Coachella Valley Unified School District.

“I think the high school and the school district did an excellent job responding. I think they were very professional throughout the entire process,” said Abed Ayoud, Legal and Policy Advisor for the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.

The school board approved the new logo this week in a 5-0 vote. The district taking action after the ADC complained the school’s former mascot was derogatory to Arabs and perpetuated stereotypes.

“I mean we knew going in that it was going to be a very sensitive topic especially to the community members here,” said Ayoud,”We didn’t want to offend anybody, we wanted to approach this in a matter and gain an understanding,” he said.

Both sides say the mascot’s redesign is a “positive resolution.” They’re also calling the process an experience they hope others can learn from.

“That whenever you’re faced with a tough problem or tough situation, sit down have a dialogue and have an open conversation, and you can reach a resolution,” Ayoud said.

The district says it’ll take some time to phase out the insensitive images such as the one on the sign near the school’s entrance. They say they’ll possibly need up to $25,000 to make those changes, the money coming from private donations, that the district is accepting.

Jesus Olivares, a graphic designer at Ink Screen Printing & Embroidery in Indio, and Coachella Valley High School graduate helped create the new logo. It replaces the 1980’s era scowling Arab with a more graphically driven depiction of a “Mighty Arab.”

“I wanted to come up with something that was respectful to identity and culture, but at the same time be prideful and determined,” Olivares said.

Moving forward, the district and the ADC wants to continue educating students about cultural sensitivities. They say they’re looking into future educational exchange programs between CVUSD and Arab students.

“This a great opportunity to reach out and learn about your fellow citizens and the world actually,” Superintendent Adams said.