Fonda-Futonville school district reaches agreement with Mohawk Nation to keep Braves name

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, N.Y.(NEWS10) - A Capital Region school district is taking steps to honor the indigenous culture and keep their name.

The Fonda-Fultonville Central School District submitted a letter to the Board of Regents March 10 asking to keep their name, the Braves.

The letter is a result of an agreement between the district and the Mohawk Nation, and it states in part, “On March 3, the district and Dr. Tom Porter (Chief Sakokwenionkwas), on behalf of the Mohawk Nation entered into an agreement that demonstrates their approval and encouragement to allow the Fonda-Fultonville Central School District to retain the name Braves."

The Board of Regents has said that a school district could keep their mascot and logo as long as it's approved by an indigenous tribe recognized by the state. One student we talked to says he is grateful for the idea. 

“It's always nice to be known as a Brave. Knowing things are pretty close makes me feel a lot better. I know they're working hard on it, and they really want to keep the name. I think especially for sports always being known as the Braves is kind of always been the key part to sports. But it definitely feels good knowing they're going to get closer to keeping the name,” said Brady Whipple.

The district thanking Dr. Porter who signed the school’s letter with his approval, as to keep the Braves name but continue their works to discontinue the Native American mascot and image.

“We are incredibly grateful to Dr Porter and the Mohawk Nation for assisting our district to continue to reshape the great tradition of our district,” said a representative from the Fonda-Fultonville Central School District.

NEWS10 has reached out to Dr. Porter, and he’s not gotten back to us as of this broadcast. NEWS10 has also reached out to the board of regents to find out if they approved the request, and are awaiting that response.