Sacred Heart Catholic School was established in 1879 and has been a staple for Catholic education in the Morrilton community and the state of Arkansas for 140 years. As a Catholic and Christian school, we strive to provide our students with an environment for their greatest potential, both spiritually and academically, while also providing a positive and challenging environment physically through extra-curricular activities. Extra-curricular activities have been an important component of our school for both our students, parents and teachers throughout the years, and we hope to continue to maintain a positive, safe, healthy, and exciting environment for all students in the years to come. Therefore, we are seeking to gather student, parent, parishioner, alumni, and community members’ opinions on the future of the mascot name and image for the Sacred Heart Rebels.
Per gathered information, in the years of the 1950’s, Sacred Heart students participated in flag football as an extracurricular activity and were named the “Grinders”, which was slang for “American Football”. It is recorded that in 1961 for boys’ basketball they were called the “Panthers” and the following year, 1962, was the first year for the new name “Rebels”. In addition to the name “Rebels,” the school also adopted the mascot image of the “Johnny Rebel” confederate soldier. The mascot and name were alive for approximately 54-55 years, until the 2016-2017 school year, when the “Johnny Rebel” confederate soldier was officially retired due to the symbolism it represents and the concerns that it may cause harm to our students.
"By definition, a rebel can be described as one who stands up for their own personal opinions despite what anyone else says. A true rebel stands for what they believe is right, not against what is right.”
To this date the name “Rebels” remains the term for all extracurricular activities with the school crest being used as the mascot image for apparel, gym floor, etc. We are conducting this survey to determine the direction the majority would like to see as the choice for the Sacred Heart extracurricular mascot name and image.
*The Sacred Heart Catholic School crest will remain the logo of the school regardless of decision of the mascot (show current school crest)