(Bud Ozzello/CHSAANow.com)

La Veta’s sports teams will be known as the Redhawks, starting with the 2021-22 school year.

The school district’s board of education voted in September to retire the previous mascot, the Redskins, following months of work and feedback. Then, on Dec. 14, the board voted to approve the Redhawks as the school’s new mascot.

The change coincides with La Veta’s new school building, which is set to open in the fall of 2021 in the south central part of the state.

The process of choose a new mascot involved “a committee of parents, alumni, students, and staff,” according to La Veta athletic director Chris Locke. This branding committee funneled feedback to the board of education.

An initial survey of new mascot options was sent to fifth graders through seniors in the district, and it offered eight choices in mascots, and also a spot for respondents to add their own option, according to board president Eleanor Foley.

“We favored Redhawks because red-tailed hawk is native to our area,” Foley said, “but waited to see what students would choose.”

That initial survey showed that Redhawks was the most popular choice, and was followed by Raptors, Bears and Red Wolves.

From there, a second survey was sent to students, parents and the community with those choices.

“Again, Redhawks was first, and Red Wolves was a distant second,” Foley said.

Further data, which included paper ballots as an option, was collected.

“All this was presented to school board and we honored the committee’s choice of Redhawks,” Foley said, noting that the vote was 3-2 in favor.

The process of rebranding is still on-going, including the development of a new logo. Foley said that the branding committee “will now begin meetings to help flesh out what images we will adopt.”

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

The sports teams at Denver South will have a new mascot, principal Bobby Thomas announced in a letter to parents on Friday afternoon.

The school’s athletic department will now be known as the Ravens, changing from Rebels.

From the letter Thomas sent:

The South High School mascot has been the Rebels since the school’s founding in 1926. The Rebels is a reference to the southern Confederacy in the Civil War. Nearly 100 years after the school’s founding, the Rebels no longer seems appropriate, acceptable, or an accurate representation of what South stands for or should reflect in its mascot. For this reason, the leadership at South determined that the mascot should be updated to better represent the school’s values.

Following “robust community feedback,” as well as process involving surveys, focus groups and a mascot selection committee that took six months, the school selected the Ravens as the new mascot.

“We believe that the Ravens represent the South community in a number of ways,” Thomas wrote. “Ravens are smart, clever birds that are known to be strategic problem solvers. They are empathetic, loyal creatures that form lifelong bonds. And importantly, the raven is an inclusive animal — it has a long history of being held in high regard both in Native American culture and others throughout the world, and ravens are not associated with any particular gender or race.”

The school’s new logo will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

(Courtesy of Englewood HS)

The stadium on the campus of Englewood High School has been renamed Randy Penn Stadium, after the legendary former coach, teacher and mayor who passed away unexpectedly last month.

Penn “was a pillar of the Englewood community,” Englewood Schools superintendent Wendy Rubin wrote in a letter last month.

Penn started in Englewood School as a teacher in 1981, and at various times, he coached football, wrestling, cross country, track and girls swimming until 2008. He was Englewood’s mayor from 2011-15, and recently retired as the executive director of the Chamber of Commerce.

Randy Penn. (Courtesy of Englewood Schools)

“Randy’s legacy in our schools and community is boundless,” Rubin wrote.

After Penn’s unexpected passing, many members of the community reached out to Rubin, Englewood athletic director Nate Smith, and Englewood principal Ryan West about the possibility of naming the stadium after him.

“Randy’s teaching and coaching career touched the lives of so many people in Englewood, and his continued involvement with the community after he retired from EHS was an example of how much he cared about Englewood,” Smith said.

The stadium recently completed a major renovation, and is now among the best facilities in the state.

On Tuesday night, the Englewood Schools Board of Education approved a proposal to rename the stadium after Penn.

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — This week is a busy one for CHSAA member schools and their athletic directors.

This week, the CHSAA office will be holding three major meetings.

First, on Tuesday, is a meeting for nearly 80 athletic directors who are either in their first or second year. The annual meeting, facilitated by assistant commissioner Jenn Roberts-Uhlig and the Colorado Athletic Directors Association, will help orient the new administrators on all things CHSAA. Topics covered include things like bylaws and forms, but also important things like networking within the AD community.

Then, on Wednesday, is CHSAA’s annual All-School Summit, which gathers athletic directors from all 363 member schools around the state for important updates and information from the state office.

Finally, Thursday is the first meeting of the year for CHSAA’s 2020-21 Board of Directors. This meeting typically includes orientation for new Board members, as well as goal setting and big-picture topics.

Updated for the 2020-21 school year, this interactive map shows where in Colorado our 363 member schools are located.

A number of other schools joined a movement to turn on their stadium lights Tuesday night as they sought to provide a source of hope for their students.

Started on Monday night in Colorado, five stadiums turned on their lights for a short period of time to show students they were thinking of them, even as schools remained closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many more joined in Tuesday as the movement spread. Among those taking part in #BeTheLightCO on Tuesday were:

Sargent:

https://twitter.com/TrevanPepper/status/1245188270268563457

https://twitter.com/TrevanPepper/status/1245184956583817216

Five Star Schools:

The lights are on at North Stadium tonight for all Adams 12 Five Star student-athletes. In a world full of uncertainty right now, we hope this provides some hope that this too shall pass. Take care of yourselves and stay healthy. We miss you all. #bethelightCO @Adams12 @CHSAA pic.twitter.com/dKQkKEWK4s

— Five Star Athletics & Activities (@5StarActivities) April 1, 2020

University:

The lights are on for the UH Bulldogs. #bethelightCO @CHSAA pic.twitter.com/LUrUoOAsoU

— University Bulldogs (@udogathletics) April 1, 2020

Sierra:

Let these lights be a beacon of hope & assurance that we are always thinking of our students! With these uncertain times we will always have them in our hearts & minds! #BeTheLightCO #DoingMyPartCO pic.twitter.com/L79jhk4zpn

— Sierra Athletics (@SierraHSsports) April 1, 2020

Let these lights be a beacon of hope & assurance that we are always thinking of our students! With these uncertain times we will always have them in our hearts & minds! #BeTheLightCO #DoingMyPartCO @CHSAA @HarrisonSDTwo @gazettepreps @jaredpolis @HSD2Athletics pic.twitter.com/O4RNdOMplT

— Sierra Athletics (@SierraHSsports) April 1, 2020

Cedaredge:

Cedaredge Bruins! We believe in our students, and we are here for this awesome community. To honor Bruin Country, the lights at the stadium will be turned on every Tuesday from 8:00-8:30pm until we are back! Hang in there and know we are thinking of you! #bethelightCO @chsaa pic.twitter.com/pqPHDaIL6j

— Cedaredge Bruins (@CedaredgeBruins) April 1, 2020

Gunnison:

@MaxPreps @CHSAA pic.twitter.com/aEIo7rRjai

— Gunnison Football (@GunnisonFB) April 1, 2020

Legacy:

Legacy’s lights are on for you Boltz! #bethelightCO #SkoBoltz #LegacyStrong @legacyhsstugo @Adams12 @5StarActivities @CHSAA @BoCoPreps pic.twitter.com/urE19FjV9d

— Coach Rider (@CoachKRider) April 1, 2020

Arapahoe:

Responding to a challenge brought by @AdamCHSAA, and @CaraSyers AHS will light the field each night from now until the end of Wish Week as a symbol of how much we are missing each Warrior, and in recognition of how isolation may impact each of us. We love you all. #bethelightCO pic.twitter.com/w5yZ5c0FeO

— Arapahoe Athletics (@ArapSports) April 1, 2020

Limon:

We miss our students!!#bethelightCO #badgernation @limonathletics @limonbadgers @CHSAA pic.twitter.com/I18PQHpp6D

— Limon HS Badgers (@limonathletics) April 1, 2020

Thinking about our students! @limonathletics @limonbadgers @CHSAA #bethelightCO #badgernation pic.twitter.com/bfBlbz5wAU

— Limon HS Badgers (@limonathletics) April 1, 2020

Alamosa:

This virus can stop us from coming together as one. But these lights shine for the hope of tomorrow. Miss you Moose Nation! You are loved! #OURHOUSEOFHOPE #MOOSENATION #BeTheLightCo #THISISALAMOSA @CHSAA @erik_melgoza @AHSSportsMedia @AHS_MeanMoose @AhsCrowd pic.twitter.com/JJ7A99k7rI

— Rion Eagan (@Rion33) April 1, 2020

Boulder:

Recht will be on Courtesy of Boulder High for Boulder High. #STANDOUT https://t.co/AIjntfKCXD

— Ryan Bishop (@ADbishopbhs) April 1, 2020

Weld Central:

This fall, three schools will join CHSAA for their initial seasons: Addenbrooke Classical Academy, Banning Lewis Prep, and DSST: Conservatory Green.

With their addition, which was approved by the Legislative Council in April 2019, the CHSAA membership will grow to 363 schools.

Below is a quick introduction to each of the three new schools.

[divider]

Addenbrooke Classical Academy

Location: Lakewood

Enrollment: 142

Mascot: Mustangs

Initial sports: Cross country, boys soccer, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A public K-12 charter school operating under Jeffco Public Schools. It opened in 2013.

[divider]

Banning Lewis Prep

Location: Colorado Springs

Enrollment: 337

Mascot: Stallions

Initial Sports: Cross country, football, track, spirit, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A charter school for grades K-12. It originally opened in 2006, but only opened its high school in 2017. The first graduating class will be the class of 2021.

[divider]

DSST: Conservatory Green

Location: Denver

Enrollment: 303

Mascot: Hornets

Initial Sports: Cross country, boys soccer, spirit, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A public STEM charter school, which was opened in 2014.

(@9RDurangoAD/Twitter)

Stadiums across Colorado lit up on Monday night as schools and districts sought to offer a beacon of hope to their students.

From Bennett to Steamboat Springs, local stadiums turned on their lights as they responded to an idea from CHSAA assistant commissioner Adam Bright to show students we are thinking of them, even as schools remained closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“High schools are so often the centerpiece of a community,” Bright said. “Shining the lights lets our communities and students know we miss them and look forward to being back. When this is over, these lights will be on and the stadiums will fill as we resume life as normal and celebrate our communities through high school athletics and activities.”

“Seeing empty stadiums with lights on in other parts of the country on social media, I thought it would be a great way to engage our Colorado high school communities,” Bright added. “I wanted to see our social media feeds filled with Colorado stadiums being the light for Colorado so I consulted with a couple of schools across the state to create a ‘Be The Light’ challenge for our schools to compete in.”

It even spawned a hashtag: #bethelightCO.

Steamboat Springs athletic director Luke DeWolfe sent the following message to his school community: “Last night the lights at Gardner Field were turned as a beacon of solidarity that signifies our commitment to kids, and our community. The lights burned for 11 minutes (one minute for each day we have been out of school). Together we will continue to shine.”

Said District 11 district athletic director Chris Noll: “The school is the hub of a community and kids love being at school. They might not always love class, but most of them love being at school and being around their peers and friends and staff members. Colorado Springs D11 is excited to participate in #BeTheLightCO as a way for us to tell our kids that we miss them and we are thinking of them! Even though we might not be together, we are still there for not only them, but the families of D11. ”

Taking part on Monday night included:

Durango, which wrote that “our stadium misses you, our halls miss you, our classrooms miss you!”

DHS Students – Our stadium misses you, our halls miss you, our classrooms miss you! We light the lights for you tonight students. We miss you and know you’re going to get through this dark chapter. There will be light once again in our stadium! #bethelightCO @AdamCHSAA @CHSAA pic.twitter.com/K6JqS8uqmi

— 9R Durango Athletics & Activities (@9RDurangoAD) March 31, 2020

Steamboat Springs:

pic.twitter.com/Nnm801wYrP

— SailorsAthletics (@SteamboatAD) March 31, 2020

Colorado Springs District 11, which put together a video:

Sierra, which wrote, “Let this be a light of hope and assurance that you are on our hearts and in our minds.”

In these tough times let us provide a light of hope! #GoStallions #StallionNation #BeTheLightCO #DoingMyPartCO pic.twitter.com/ct7EmTZL1n

— Sierra Athletics (@SierraHSsports) March 31, 2020

Bennett:

“Bennett Tiger Family we are leaving the lights on for you! Let this be a light of hope and assurance that you are on our hearts and in our minds. We will run the lights every weekday night from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Paul Reed Field”. #bethelightCO pic.twitter.com/BQUDeI34pA

— Adam Bright (@HPU_Bright) March 31, 2020

Now the hope is that other schools and school districts jump in and take part.

“More and more lights across Colorado will shine bright over the coming days as a symbol of hope and assurance that our communities are in our thoughts,” Bright said. “I’m proud of the sense of camaraderie our Colorado high schools share and will enjoy this challenge lighting up stadiums in solidarity of great days ahead across the state.”

UPDATE: On Tuesday night, the movement continued to grow.

(Photo courtesy of D11 Athletics)

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

Cornerstone Christian Academy, the private school located in Westminster, will change its name to Flatirons Academy starting next school year.

The name change comes as a result of a partnership with Flatirons Community Church, which is nearby.

The school will open a newly-constructed K-12 campus for the 2021 school year, at I-25 and County Road 8.

Flatirons Academy will continue to operate in Class 1A, and as a member of the 5280 League.

The map of member schools — there are now 359 — has been updated for the 2018-19 school year.