Approved: OC, Ewing To Co-op Jr High Sports As Cyclones

The Tigers will be Cyclones this fall, at least in junior high athletics. 

The junior high Ewing Tigers will merge with the Cyclones as the OCE Cyclones for the 2016-17 school year, excluding football. The colors will be green, black and silver, and they will wear Cyclone uniforms. 

The motion, which passed on Thursday night’s meeting, was met with a concerns by Ewing community members about Tiger identity and the future of the co-op.

“What matters to me is for our kids feel a part of that,” said one community member. “I just would like to hope our kids will feel a part of that, and what can be done to make them feel a part of that team if it’s all OC and the green. Plus, that’s something that concerns me also down the road. If that’s something we’re working towards, then I feel these stipulations, I mean, will it be like ‘This is the way it’s going to be’ or can we work together even at Junior High level?”

Another community member echoed those concerns. “I think that the junior high is a stepping stone to what our future could be with OC and I think that everyone, you know nobody want’s this, nobody wants towns to have to collide together, but we do need to come together and refresh, basically. If that’s what it’s going to be like with junior high, what’s it going to be like with high school, if the high schools do come together. And the junior high (adopting Cyclones mascot and colors) isn’t a decider for me, but the high school is, being something fresh and new with everybody. That’s a big deal for me.”

Ewing Principal Greg Appleby addressed the crowds concerns. “The one thing I heard from the crowd earlier is that they wanted a roadmap of what things are going to look like in the future,” said Appleby. “I think that’s what we heard from our people, that they want some kind of plan of what things are going to look like in the future. And we can’t predict that. But I think that when we join them the high odds say that we’re going to join them as Cyclones. My intuition says that we’re probably going to be cyclones - green, silver and black.”

However, Appleby said he believes that as long as kids get a chance to play, colors and mascot are not important. Although other board and community members disagree, discussion ended shortly thereafter. The Ewin board unanimously approved the co-op.

On Monday June 11, the Orchard-Clearwater advisory boards officially approved the co-op, with the motion put forward by Orchard President Candice Hoke that stated, “We co-op junior high sports with the exception of football for the next two years with Ewing, as the Cyclones — green, black and silver."

Per Thursday's vote in Ewing, the OCE Cyclones colors indeed be will be green, black and silver.”