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Residents urge clarity after handbook wording on school song, colors and mascot draws concern
Summary
Alumni and residents told the Lead-Deadwood School District board they fear handbook wording changes—adding 'Deadwood' to the school name, specifying maroon and gold and an estimated mascot purchase—could signal broader rebranding; the board said the handbook only updates abbreviations and colors and that the song’s words will not change.
At the Lead-Deadwood School District 40-1 board meeting, alumni and residents pressed the board for clarity about handbook wording that references the school song, colors and a proposed mascot.
"My name is Laurie Atkins Hayden, and I'm a graduate of the class of 1976," said Laurie Atkins Hayden during public forum, asking whether the handbook update merely changes colors, adds Deadwood to the name or signals a larger rewrite. Hayden questioned whether a $10,000 estimate for a new mascot costume was an appropriate expense and whether students would volunteer to be the mascot.
Board members responded that the revision being placed in the handbook replaces older references (for example, "Lead High") with the current abbreviation "LDHS" and formally specifies the school colors as maroon and gold. "The only changes were it now says LDHS instead of Lead High... and it specifies maroon and gold. Other than that, the words don't change," a board member said, adding the intention was to reintroduce the school song to students by including it in student handbooks.
Speakers who recalled the 1972 consolidation and decades of local rivalry said the community has emotional ties to names and traditions and that any apparent rebranding can reopen old tensions. Some speakers suggested the district repurpose mascot funds for other needs if student participation or long-term use of the costume is uncertain.
Board members said the mascot request originated with students, that a previously used mascot costume had become unsafe or uncomfortable for performers, and that the costume estimate was part of the district budget. The board also said the newspaper article that prompted several calls and emails to the district conveyed the change in a misleading way, and that the handbook wording will be posted and discussed as part of the next agenda.
The district did not adopt any additional changes to the song's lyrics at the meeting; board members characterized the handbook update as a reintroduction of existing material rather than a substantive change to the song.
Next steps: the handbook language will appear in the packet for formal approval; the board encouraged continued community input and said they would provide copies for the record to speakers who requested them.
