Ursuline does not have many mascots. While there are a total of five mascots, there are four house mascots and only three in the context of our Upper School. But, we see these mascots a lot. From sweaters to squishmallows, spirit rallies to statues, each of these three animals, the lion, otter, and bear, peer out from many different places and are deeply connected to how we think of the school. But, as a Nova myself, I don’t understand the Novas’ mascot, a lion with a full mane.

Lions represent bravery, dignity, and strength, in a Christian setting and beyond. There is even symbolism of a lion in the Bible, through The Lion of Judah. Through the Bible, lions are used as a symbol of the Sun, a light to the world, and a symbol of God’s Message. In popular culture, lions are seen through Lion King and other positive pieces of media. Lions are awesome. But, not much emphasis is put on whether the lion has a mane. And does it really matter?

The Novas’ lion has a full mane and represents an adult male lion. Not only does this not represent the students of our school or the Novas as a house, maned lions in the wild should not be placed as a goal for our students or even seen as a good thing in the context of what our school wants to depict with our choice of a mascot. Within lions’ social structure adult male lions tend to be reclusive, selfish, and violent, frequently acting for their own benefit with disregard for others. Through their adolescence, young male lions grow their manes while roaming alone and fighting with other young lions over their territories. On top of that, young male lions tend to treat female lions poorly, and into adulthood, parts of their prejudice still lingers. Is this what we want a third of our Upper School students to strive to be? 

Meanwhile, female lions, most of which do not have manes, live social and societal lives. Female lions do most of the hunting for pride, raise the cubs, and contribute greatly to the existence and function of their societies. I think female lions embody the spirit of St. Angela better than male ones because they serve selflessly, contribute their best to their societies, and live fulfilling lives with their communities, just like St. Angela.

I understand why we chose the lion in the first place. It represents God, His Message and Love, and victory. But, the true role and significance of lions, especially lions with manes, may not be what we want our students to strive to be. In my opinion, the current mascot of the Novas does not fully portray all we are and want to be. I think a possible solution could be as simple as removing our lion’s mane. Not only does a female lion better portray the student body, but female lions contribute equally, if not more to their communities than the maned males, embodying the spirit of St. Angela. Our Ursuline community strives to push for the advancement of women and the widening of their futures, and in many ways, our current Nova mascot, an adult male lion, does not best exhibit who we are and what we want to give to the world.