Townsend chooses new mascot

CASTALIA — Marvel superhero Thor would love Townsend Community School's new mascot. After an extensive process that began this spring, the school's students learned last week they would be known as the Townsend Thunder during an open house. Superintendent Ryan Bohn said since Townsend opened in 2011, the school hasn't had a mascot. "Our students had expressed an interest in coming up with a school mascot, which would give them an extra sense of pride in their school," he said. "This past spring, we surveyed our students and allowed them to brainstorm possible options for consideration, along with a reason why each mascot would be a good representation of Townsend." Other mascot choices students suggested included the Terriers, Turtles, Wolves, Legends, Spiders, Rangers and the Ducks. "After additional feedback from students and staff, and one final survey, the Thunder was the winning selection, which was revealed at our open house on Wednesday," Bohn said. "The logo was designed in June through a competition on Hatchwise.com. The competition allowed artists from all over the world to compete against one another to come up with the design that we liked best. The competition garnered over 400 different designs to choose from." In addition to the mascot reveal, the open house allowed Townsend students and families to engage with community organizations like OHgo, Care and Share, Erie County Job and Family Services/Ohio Means Jobs, the Erie County Health Department, among others. "Our students also completed a scavenger hunt which guided them through the building," Bohn said. "At the end of the scavenger hunt, students were able to redeem a free t-shirt containing the new school logo and a ticket for a free Hawaiian Ice snow cone." About 150 students and 350 people total attended the open house, which "was a huge success." "It was a great opportunity for us to connect and re-engage with many of our students and their families as we get ready to kick-off the new school year on Monday, Aug. 29," Bohn said. "We are very grateful for the numerous community partners and agencies that volunteered to be in attendance, which allowed our students and their families to connect with many great local resources." This school year, about 525 students from Erie, Huron, Lorain, Ottawa, Sandusky and Seneca counties are enrolled at Townsend Community School. Bohn shared what he's looking forward to during the 2022-23 school year. "We are excited to continue to expand on our building-wide PBIS (positive behavioral intervention and supports) initiative, which promotes positive student behavior, good decision-making and improving attendance. "We're also extremely focused on connecting all of our students to a career pathway that matches their strengths and interests. As part of this, we will be implementing YouScience aptitude testing this year. YouScience is a collaborative tool that is being used by area schools and businesses that are connected through Firelands Forward and the Erie County Business Advisory Council, which I am an active member of." Reach reporter Caitlin Nearhood at nearhood@sanduskyregister.com and follow her on Twitter @CaitlinNearhood - Support local journalism. Click here to subscribe to the Register.