Tag: native american mascots

Someone wears a blue and orange Kingfisher outfit and stands with their arms out in front of the Illini Union.

Student group hopes to make belted kingfisher U of I’s official mascot

Students have been pushing since 2019 for the blue and orange bird to be U of I’s official mascot.

U Of I Chancellor Releases Plan For Campus Life After Chief Illiniwek

A plan for addressing issues related to the University of Illinois’ use of Chief Illiniwek as a mascot includes formation of a student council to look at the development of new traditions for the Urbana campus. Chancellor Robert Jones released the implementation plan on Friday. The plan draws from input from a series of community-wide

The Retired University Of Illinois Mascot Still Lingers On Campus

URBANA – Matthew Sakiestewa Gilbert remembers watching a man dressed up in Native American regalia dance across a football field as “surreal” and “in many ways silly.” It was the fall of 2006, and the University of Illinois’ former mascot, Chief Illiniwek, sported a feather headdress and face paint, as he wove in and out