In 1997, a group of local residents led by Glen Douglas approached Superintendent Jack Welch, and asked that Frontier as well as other area schools to do away with their mascots, which they deemed "offensive" to residents of Native American descent. The local schools of Mohawk (Warriors), Turners Falls (Indians), and Ware (Indians) all ignored the plea for a name change. However, Frontier (Redskins) did not, and the Frontier School Committee voted to remove the Redskin mascot and delete any reference to the term. There was much opposition, as the term ‘Redskin’ was a symbol of 44 years of honor and tradition. Thus started an over two-year struggle as to what the name should be. The debate outlasted numerous votes, student polls, and lawsuits, and a name could still not be decided on. In 1997 and 1998 students were polled as to what they wanted their new mascot to be, and in both years the majority of students ignored the choices and wrote in their current mascot. Eventually in 2000, the name was removed, and the school was labeled with the mascot ‘Redhawk’, with the 2001-2002 school year the first year the name was used.
