Aloha High School Warriors Have a New Mascot
Aloha High School has a new Warriors sign as the school changes its long-held mascot. This week workers removed the old signage and ‘Hawaiian Warrior’ mascot logo from the AHS building and replaced them with larger lettering with the Aloha ‘A.’
The Beaverton School District began working with students in December of 2024 about what changes would be made after district policy moved away from using mascots that depict a human figure or a single gender.
“We started our rebranding process by surveying students to see if they'd like to continue the use of the ‘warrior’ name,” BSD Public Communications Officer Shellie Bailey-Shah says. “Seventy-six percent of students polled indicated that they did.”
Students were also asked what kind of imagery they wanted for the new mascot. After several rounds of voting, the winning design depicts a wolf with a shield background. The wolf’s fur contains a ‘hidden’ A and W for ‘Aloha Warriors.’ They will also continue to use the Aloha ‘A,’ as seen on the sign put up this week.
The previous mascot was created for the school when it opened in the late 1960s. It depicted a seal with a ‘Hawaiian warrior’ resembling King Kamehameha, the first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii.
Though the origins of the Aloha area’s name are disputed and not likely related to the Hawaii or Hawaiian culture, the high school has long used Hawaiian references. Whether or not these were appropriate has been a topic of discussion by some in the community.
“Changing the AHS mascot has been under consideration for years,” Bailey-Shah says.
For example, the AHS Pacific Islander Club posted a petition on their social media in June of 2023 wanting no further use of the Hawaiian warrior logo in new construction.
“Cultural appropriation is the use of someone’s culture for an aesthetic or theme. […] Even when used in a positive way, it ignores the historical background or cultural meaning of what is being presented or used,” the petition says about the school’s use of Hawaiian themes. “We would love to see a more welcoming and inclusive image to welcome people to our school community.”
The replacement of the school mascot imagery will continue over time as the school goes through scheduled renovations. Changes to uniforms and small signage are being paid for by the general fund.
“Next summer's work in the gym to replace the flooring (including logo) and bleachers, which are both at end-of-life, is being funded by the construction excise tax.” Bailey-Shah says.
In addition to the mascot sign change, the AHS campus is undergoing renovation this summer for upgrades to the building's HVAC system and improvements to athletic facilities. Those renovations are funded through the voter-approved bond passed in 2022.
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