Petition underway to keep Kings and Queens names for RDC Athletics

“There didn’t seem to be a whole lot of lead-up or warning, we were just kind of blind-sided by it,” says Henwood. “The more a few of us alumni started to chat about it, the more we didn’t quite understand the decision and didn’t agree with it obviously. I felt a bit of an obligation to kind of step-in and have our voice heard and make sure we at least go about this process the right way.”

Henwood’s petition has already garnered nearly 5,000 signatures. He feels a new name could potentially erase a legacy that many have worked hard to build and create.

“It means so much more than maybe what people think,” he explains. “A lot of people that maybe haven’t been involved with the programs might just think it’s a crown and it’s a logo that you wear on a jersey. But for a lot of people it was an opportunity to be part of something so much more than just sport. It’s all the off-the-court stuff, and off-the-ice stuff, and the cooperation and teamwork and leadership skills that coaches work so hard to create, it’s a culture, it’s a family.”

“As a university, we want to be positioned in a certain way, and this is in no way disrespectful to the tradition and legacy of the Kings and Queens,” explains RDC president Dr. Peter Nunoda. “That’s always going to be a cherished part of our history here. We’re not forgetting where we came from and we never will.”

Henwood, however, feels the reason or reasons for the proposed change appear unclear.

“They felt like it was a good time to rebrand everything and that side of it I understand,” says Henwood. “But none of us understood the need to change it from Kings and Queens. We know that most programs across the country have one program name for their male and female programs, but I think just following suit just because other programs have done it or are doing it doesn’t make enough sense for us to drop such a rich history.”

Nunoda says having different team names for different genders can sometimes be awkward, adding one name is easier for everyone.

“I think particularly about co-ed sports where, for example, we have a mixed curling team. What exactly do we call that curling team? If we have a single name, then we can be identified that way.”

Henwood says he and many others just want to have their voices heard.

“If a change does occur, we just would like a whole lot more structure and steps and framework to the process and more people’s involvement, and a little bit more insight as to why these changes have been brought forward,” he suggests. “It’s not an attack against a person or a group, or people that are making the decision. It’s hey, we want to know more about this decision and here’s our side of it.”

Nunoda points out that no decision has been made at this time.

“We’ve made this announcement that this is a direction we’d like to pursue,” says Nunoda. “We have a focus group session that has been announced for February where we’re going to welcome that input both from alumni, from current student-athletes, from anyone in the community that has an interest in this question and we’re going to be completely open to the feedback that we get.”

Brittany Lausen, president of the RDC Students Association, says student’s she’s spoken with seem to understand the new direction.

“They understand that the timing is right,” says Lausen. “As we’re rebranding to become a university, it makes sense that we rebrand our athletic teams at the same time to be more inclusive, and to have that over-encompassing, gender-neutral team, very similar to other institutions across Alberta and the country.”

Lausen encourages everyone to have their voice heard by either taking part in the upcoming RDC Athletics rebranding focus groups on Feb. 11 or submitting feedback through an online survey available until Feb. 14.

Once all of the feedback has been collected, College officials say work will begin to determine the new brand and name that is a best fit for the future RDU Athletics.

Nunoda says the hope is to reach a decision that is satisfactory to everyone involved.

“I think it’s anticipating the future in a positive fashion,” offers Nunoda. “It’s both things, it’s part of that rebranding, but it’s a sense of gender-neutrality I think is the best way to describe it. I just think the feedback that we’ve gotten tells us that people are proud, they’re passionate, they’re engaged in how our teams represent our institution and I think that’s a wonderful thing.”

by rdnewsNOW staff

Petition underway to keep Kings and Queens names for RDC Athletics

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