FORSYTH — After nearly three months of conversations between Forsyth Public Schools, its students, its branding partner, community members, and Texas Longhorn lawyers, the town's high school has a singular official logo.
“A couple of years ago, when they changed the logo … It just kind of came out of nowhere and people never had a chance to speak up," said Preston McGregor, the Forsyth High School (FHS) student body president.
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McGregor, a Forsyth junior, responded to the school's initial mascot proposal with a video on Facebook, expressing community concerns surrounding the imagery, which garnered more than 150 interactions, more than 50 comments, and nearly 100 shares.
When the school proposed "the old logo" to its branding partner, BSN Sports, school officials said the Texas-based company rejected the idea because the dogie shared too similar a likeness to the logo of the University of Texas Longhorns.
“(The Longhorns' legal team) watched Preston’s video and approved that ("the old") logo could be used and then asked us to take down all of our Texas Longhorn stuff," said Chris Hess, Forsyth Public Schools superintendent.
Annika Sorenson, the student body vice president, acknowledged a David and Goliath dynamic between not only the students and school board, but FHS and the University of Texas.
“Who would have ever thought (the Longhorns) would even recognize us, or notice us? And here we are reaching out to them, and–yeah, (this) just shows the closeness of our small town," said Sorenson.
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McGregor, when asked where a story about a small town's branding fits into the larger fabric of news, he said it shows the power of every day people have to evoke change.
“When you speak up for something you believe in, you can get people to listen–and I think that’s how it kind of ties into today’s news climate," said McGregor. "The people down at the bottom of the pyramid can be heard.”
