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UIS Team Names May Change

www.uisjournal.com

The University Of Illinois Springfield continues to kick around the idea of anew school mascot. The Chancellor's office paid for a consultant whose suggestions include the Springers, Sabers, Mammoths and the Stampede. Aaron Mulvey is the president of the Student Government Association at UIS. He says some students are confused by the Prairie Star nickname and the mascot, a masked boy named Cozmo. Others say they just don't like either.

But, there are those who would prefer to keep original name chosen back when UIS was Sangamon State University. "There's some people that don't want it changed - obviously when you bring it up you're going to hear all sides of it ... But a lot of the mass confusion comes from - what is it? Is it stars, is it prairie stars ... and then the mascot itself has changed," Mulvey says. Previous to the mascot Cozmo, it was an angry-looking star.

Mulvey says having a strong mascot and team name is important for the school's branding efforts. Student government formed a task force after doing an on-campus survey last year that found 75% of respondents favored a name change. Another forum will be held Tuesday at 9pm to discuss and vote on the issue. The chancellor has final say.

Rachel Otwell of the Illinois Times is a former NPR Illinois reporter.