Reprinted without permission from the May 7, 1994 Lowell Sun:
 
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No such thing as a River Hawk?  There is now.
 
 
LOWELL - Fanfare blared from the university orchestra, a colorful slide
was displayed in the big screen, and the crowd applauded.
 
Yesterday morning in Cumnock Hall auditorium, as a capper to the school's
centennial preview, the University of Massachusett-Lowell unveiled its
brand new athletic nickname and logo.
 
Beginning with the 1995-95 season, the Chiefs are out.  River Hawks are
in.
 
"I'm thrilled," said Dana Skinner, UMass-Lowell's associate athletic
director.  "It gives us an opportunity to do something we haven't been
able to do, which is to get creative.  We've always been so concerned
about thr Chief's logo.  It restricted our ability to promote the
nickname.
 
"Now I see our entire department stopping by the office with suggestions
and recommendations.  We're going to have a lot of fun with this."
 
The logo, depicting a flying hawk in front of a red moon, was designed by
Brian Trainor, a 1980 graduate of the University of Lowell School of Art.
 Trainor was part of the brief presentation ceremony, as was 9-year-old
Chad Dooley, whose letter to UMass-Lowell hockey coach Bruce Crowder first
suggested the name Hawks.
 
Although there is no such bird as a river hawk, Athletic Director Dr.
Wayne Edwards felt strongly about incorporating the Merrimack River into
the nickname.  A student referendum and a consensus of the search
committee supported the idea.
 
There is also an indirect tie to the Native American heritage that
UMass-Lowell, and many other universities, are trying hard not to offend.
 Ralph Lawson, a Native America descendant and president of the Friends of
UMass-Lowell hockey, stood at the podium when the logo was unveiled and
offered his viewpoint.
 
"In Indian mythology, individuals secure power from guardian spirits in
the guise of birds," he explained.  "To the North American Indian, birds
are not to be killed or attacked, as they are considered to be a higher
form of life.
 
"The river hawk has strength, speed and courage.  It has keen vision,
sharp focus and competitive spirit.  It soars to great heights but never
loses its connection to the river and the land below."
 
The break with tradition does not have unanimous approval, however.  Some
former coaches and athletes saw no reason to change the nickname, which
has been in use since 1976.
 
"It's not a big deal for the kids coming in," said longtime UMass-Lowell
hockey coach Bill Riley.  But I feel badly for the 10 graduating classes
who learned to love and cheer for the Chiefs."
 
Bob Ellis, the play-by-play voice of UMass-Lowell hockey on WLLH and a
member of the logo committee, is also happy with the name River Hawks.
With one reservation.
 
"It'll be a whole new training process," he said.  "The tongue will
probably get twisted between the teeth in a moment of excitement, and I'm
sure 'Chiefs' will be blurted out on the air."
 
 
  - Lowell SUN, 5/7/94, Howie Newman, Sun Staff
 
 
 
[If anyone's interested in what the new logo looks like, I'd be glad to
FAX it to you....    - Steve]
 
 
 
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Steve Weisfeldt                                   Go River Hawks!!!!
Univ. of Lowell (now UMASS-Lowell)  1986, 1988
[log in to unmask]                          Is is October yet??????
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