NCAA - Marquette University
Marquette U. Alum Plea for Nickname Change
Stunning plea to MU
Alum makes offer to bring back Warriors
Warriors or Golden Eagles?
For a decade, the matter of the Marquette University
athletic nickname has inflamed fans' passions and
perplexed university administrators. The issue was
suddenly thrust into Marquette's graduation ceremony
Sunday at the Bradley Center, wearing a $2 million
promise.
Toward the end of his address, commencement speaker
Wayne Sanders - vice chairman of the university's Board
of Trustees - said he and an unnamed fellow trustee
would each donate $1 million to the school if it
switches its athletic nickname back to "Warriors."
The announcement surprised Marquette administrators
on stage with Sanders. The university later issued a
statement taking no side.
To avoid offending Native Americans, Marquette dumped
its Indian mascot and the "Warriors" nickname in 1994 in
favor of "Golden Eagles." The change has irked many
alumni over the last decade.
Sanders, former chairman and chief executive of
Kimberly-Clark Corp., received plenty of applause after
what one graduate called "an Austin Powers moment."
He also apologized to Father Robert Wild, Marquette's
president, for pouncing on the issue without warning.
The immediate response from officials on Sunday was
somewhat tepid but by no means dismissive.
"If the trustees decide that the university should
revisit the name change, those conversations would
involve members of the larger community and no change
would be made that would compromise the dignity of any
segment of our community," Marquette spokesman Ben Tracy
said in a written statement issued after the ceremony.
"This issue never has been and never will be about
money. It is about tradition, pride, and respect for
human dignity."
Marquette athletic director Bill Cords, who attended
the ceremony, basically deferred to the official
statement by Tracy and preferred not to get into the
debate that has burned his ears for years now.
"It's a university thing right now because they're
members of the Board of Trustees," Cords said by phone
later Sunday. "The spokesman for the university is Ben
Tracy right now."
Students asked about the possibility of another name
change after the ceremony didn't seem to think it would
fly, and one said the older alumni cared more about it
than the new ones.
Although $2 million is a lot of money, Marquette
already has been highly successful in fund-raising
recently. In the last six years, the school has raised
$270 million through a major campaign.
Lori Nickel of the Journal Sentinel staff
contributed to this report.
From the May 17, 2004 editions of the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
This article was taken from
www.jsonline.com. All rights
reserved.
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