TACOMA —The Bethel Braves are now the Bethel Bison.

The Bethel School District announced the change of the Bethel High School mascot in a news release Wednesday following a months-long process to comply with a new state law.

The law, passed by the state Legislature earlier this year as House Bill 1356, took effect July 25 and states that beginning Jan. 1, 2022, “public schools may not use Native American names, symbols, or images as school mascots, logos, or team names.”

At the time the bill was introduced, at least 30 schools in Washington were using Native-related names as mascots or logos, including Braves, Warriors, Indians and Chiefs.

Some schools have voted to change Native-related mascots, including Columbia River High School in Vancouver, Shorewood High School in Shoreline, North Central High School and Garry Middle School in Spokane.

Bethel High opened in Spanaway in 1952 and has been the Bethel Braves ever since.

After passage of the bill, Bethel started a process in September to change its mascot and created a committee of students, staff and members of the public to come up with ideas. A survey was conducted in October to solicit public feedback.

“We went through every single suggestion,” said Bethel High principal Christy Rodriguez.

As part of the law, public schools located in counties containing all or part of a tribal reservation or tribal trust land need to consult with tribes regarding their Native mascots or names and may receive authorization to use them, while schools that are not on or adjacent to tribal land are not eligible for an exemption.

The Puyallup Tribe responded to the bill on its website, citing research showing that Native-related mascots can be harmful to Native youth.

“The Tribe expects our school district partners to do their due diligence in researching current mascots, logos, and team names and making their best effort to address any inappropriate use of Native American names, symbols, or images prior to contacting the Puyallup Tribe for input and consultation,” the Puyallup Tribe stated.

The committee considered mascots like Bobcats and Bruins but decided on Bison.

Students Ramya Nichols, Rebekah Morales, Karla Chavez, Mia Red Crow, James Lathrop, who were part of the committee, presented their recommendation to the board on Nov. 9.

“As we chose a new mascot for Bethel High, we wanted to step away from the Braves image that was seen as disrespectful, harmful, and stereotypical, while still honoring the past,” the committee said in its presentation.

The students said no other high school in the state is using Bison, and that bison are also intertwined with the Native American community, which hunted and used every part of the animal for survival until the arrival of settlers. The bison population went from being in the tens of millions in the middle of the 19th century to around 500,000 today.

“By choosing the Bison as our new mascot, we celebrate the strength of the community — by choosing North America’s largest land animal. Though they look big, and despite weighing as much as a ton, Bison can run up to 40 miles per hour. They can jump up to six feet vertically, and can quickly pivot to combat predators. These facts make us think of our sports teams, who will take the Bison name to high places,” the presentation said.

The Bethel school board thanked the commission for its work and unanimously approved the change 4-0.

Red Crow, a senior and member of the Spokane Tribe, was a member of the committee.

“I felt this was a change I was proud to be a part of,” she said.

Seniors Karla Chavez and James Lathrop said Wednesday that the process was a learning experience about Native American culture, and that they hope it will be for the wider community.

Chavez said that if members of a community are asking for a change because they feel something is mocking them or their culture, then it’s important to listen.

Caleb Knox, a leadership teacher and ASB advisor was also part of the mascot-change committee.

“Our students made a great choice,” Knox said. “This is a school learning opportunity about indigenous culture, history, and what we can do to be better neighbors moving forward.”

The school is currently putting a plan into place to get all signage and uniforms changed as soon as possible.

This story was originally published November 18, 2021 5:00 AM.