Hail the Golden Bears' return, with a day of their own, at East

YOUNGSTOWN

East High School will be home to the Golden Bears once again.

Krish Mohip, city schools CEO, announced Wednesday that East High will be represented by the Golden Bear, replacing the current Panther mascot and team name. He also signed a resolution naming Aug. 2 “Golden Bears Day.”

Mohip’s proclamation was met with cheers and a standing ovation by the gathered Golden Bear loyalists.

The announcement came during a news conference at East where about 50 people – many East alumni, many wearing blue-and-gold Golden Bear apparel – gathered to celebrate the occasion.

East’s mascot was the Golden Bear from 1926 until the school’s closure in 1998. When the high school reopened in a new building in 2007 on Bennington Avenue, the mascot was changed to the Panthers. Since then, many of the alumni have supported a return to the former mascot.

Lock Beachum, Sr., former Youngstown Board of Education president and East principal, said he had pushed for a return to the Golden Bears for years.

“I’m very happy today,” he said. “We wanted to reconnect to those East High traditions that go back to the ’20s and ’30s.”

Read more about the change in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.