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Connetquot community split over 'Thunderbirds' as board weighs legal options and missed tribal deadline
Summary
Public comment at Connetquot’s April 8 board meeting centered on the Thunderbird mascot, tribal-agreement deadlines and whether the district should continue paying legal counsel to defend the name in light of NYSED guidance and a judge’s warning about state-aid risk.
A prolonged public-comment period at the Connetquot Central School District board meeting on April 8 focused on the district’s Thunderbird mascot, the state’s guidance on Indigenous names and tribal agreements, and whether the district should continue litigation to keep the name.
Multiple community members — including veterans, alumni and parents — urged the board to fight to keep the Thunderbird identity. Joseph Barber, who identified himself as a 1989 graduate and lifelong resident, told the board, “I don’t understand why we should be changing Thunderbirds,” and asked trustees to state their positions publicly. Other speakers recounted family histories linking the mascot to military veterans and local origins rather than to…
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