POCAHONTAS, AR Jan. 6 – For the first time in its history, Black River Technical College has a mascot. On January 6, Hadley Rose, BRTC Student Government Associate (SGA) president and a currently enrolled student, announced that BRTC will be represented by the black hawks.
“This was student-led endeavor,” said Dr. Martin Eggensperger, BRTC president. “Very few colleges have the opportunity for their students to choose the mascot they feel represents them and the future of the institution.”
During the announcement, Rose described the year-long process by which the college asked the student body and SGA if they wanted a mascot. After doing some research, SGA learned that “five 2-year colleges in Arkansas including BRTC did not have a mascot,” said Rose.
Discussions led to a petition from SGA, with 136 student signatures, to college administration expressing an interest in identifying a mascot. “SGA voted unanimously for Black River Technical College to have a mascot,” Rose said.
After soliciting public comments from students, the community, faculty, and staff for potential mascots, 4 finalists were identified. A survey offered in early December 2019 provided the opportunity for the same constituents to help narrow the finalists down to just one.
The announcement on Monday was simply the to identify the physical mascot character. The final design, logo, and costume will be revealed in August 2020. Between now and August, BRTC will continue to gather student, community, and faculty and staff input.
“BRTC Student Government agreed to fully fund the mascot from the design process to the launch party,” Rose explained. The launch party will be held in during the first week of Fall 2020.
The purpose of the mascot is not to promote sports—and BRTC does not intend to have a sports program. “It’s about students have ownership in the college” Director of Marketing Ann Savage said. “A mascot gives them something to have pride in and rally around.”
For more information about enrolling in BRTC, contact Angie French at Angie.French@blackrivertech.edu or (870) 248-4000.