University of Illinois Springfield alumni opposing any change to the Prairie Stars athletic teams’ nickname will be pressing their case at this Saturday’s basketball games at UIS.
“We thought about setting up a table and taking the petition with us,” said Dana Goodrum, a UIS graduate and one of the organizers of a petition drive to encourage the school to retain the nickname it has had since 1977. “But we decided we’d just be there and talk with people during the games.”
She said alumni will be at both the men’s and women’s basketball games at The Recreation and Athletic Center wearing Prairie Stars shirts and providing Prairie Stars stickers to those who don’t have a logo shirt. They also are encouraging people to bring posters showing support for the current nickname.
“Our biggest hope is to see an overwhelming response to show the administration that current students may not understand the history of the university,” Goodrum said. “There are 37 years’ worth of alums who do.”
The story was reported by The State Journal-Register on December 10, 2013.
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