Pioneer Mascot Retirement

The Pioneer Mascot Committee seeks feedback from ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ constituents including students, faculty and staff, and alumni. To help guide this conversation, the following frequently asked questions provide some context about the history of the Pioneers, Pioneer Pete, and the mascot retirement discussion.

Frequently Asked Questions about ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥'s mascot

ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥’s mascot--the symbolic figure used to depict Pioneers--was originally depicted as an astronaut, but has been characterized as a male gold prospector named Pioneer Pete since the early 1970s.

In October 2018, ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥’s Academic Senate passed a resolution to recommend removing Pioneer Pete as the mascot. In November, the Associated Students, Inc., also passed a resolution to retire Pioneer Pete.  

Both resolutions were forward to President Leroy M. Morishita, and a Pioneer Mascot Committee was created.

ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ President Leroy M. Morishita convened the Pioneer Mascot Committee to make a recommendation about the future of Pioneer Pete and whether there should be an image or mascot to represent “Pioneers.” Using surveys, town halls and other community-wide feedback, the committee will provide a summary of findings to President Leroy M. Morishita in late Spring 2019, with recommendations on how to proceed.

Co-chaired by Suzanne Espinoza, vice president for student affairs and Kimberly Baker Flowers, university diversity officer, the Pioneer Mascot Committee is representative of the larger ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥ community, including students, staff, faculty and alumni.

The committee is tasked with engaging in collaborative university-wide information gathering with the final goal of drafting a recommendation to the president that identifies whether a  different mascot or symbol should embody what it means to be a “Pioneer.”

President Leroy M. Morishita will review the recommendations, and along with the Cabinet, determine the next steps for the process. 

President Morishita has called for a summary of recommendations to be presented to him by the Pioneer Mascot Committee by the end of April 2019.

No. Red, black and white will continue to be our school colors.

Yes. as our Alumni Relations office says, we are #foreverpioneer. “Pioneer” has been with the university since 1961 and will not change. The goal of the committee is to engage the campus community in a discussion to redefine “Pioneer” in the context of an updated university mascot.

Characterized mascots are most often used as part of the intercollegiate athletic identity. However, ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥’s Athletics Department rebranded to use a stylized “EB," and is not using Pioneer Pete as part of uniforms or promotional materials.