money New sign added in front of Kaukauna High School after concerns over Galloping Ghost statue
KAUKAUNA - It took a little longer than originally expected, but the sign in front of Kaukauna High School to accompany the Galloping Ghost statue, which was called into question last year, has been installed.
In orange block letters, the sign — which was added last Tuesday — reads, “Home of the Galloping Ghosts.”
“It’s almost like putting a caption on a picture,” principal Chris McDaniel told The Post-Crescent.
The sign was the district’s solution after a group of students addressed the board in January 2022 during a closed session, saying the statue can evoke racist imagery of the Ku Klux Klan and isn't reflective of the district's welcoming and inclusive nature.
Adding signage to the statue was one of three options the district said it would explore in response to the students' concerns. The other two were to leave the statue as it is or relocate it away from the front entrance.
McDaniel said he can’t speak for the students who initially raised concerns, but the point of adding a sign is to better tell the intent of the statue. Since the sign has only been up for a week, he hasn’t had a ton of people reaching out with feedback, but what he has heard has been positive.
The sign that now sits in front of the school wasn’t the first design presented to the board.
Last May, Kaukauna Area School District administration asked the board to approve just under $53,000 for a single-sided letter sign that would read "Home of the Galloping Ghosts" and an LED message board next to the statue. The board rejected that design and asked the administration to come back with an option that would cost the district no more than $25,000.
After those conversations, McDaniel said he was approached by a 2001 Kaukauna High School graduate who now works at Team Industries. He offered to fabricate a sign and worked with McDaniel to come up with a feasible design that would tell the story of the statue.
Team Industries made it a priority for Kaukauna alumni to work on the project and even donated a good portion of the materials that were used, McDaniel said. The rest of the cost was picked up by the Kaukauna Alumni Foundation, so there was no cost to the district.
There are a few tweaks left, McDaniel said, such as cleaning up the landscaping around it and adjusting the lights so it’s visible at night. But with the majority of the work done, it’s nice to have the pop of black and orange in front of the entrance that hasn’t seen many significant changes since it was built over 20 years ago, he said.
Reach AnnMarie Hilton at ahilton@gannett.com or 920-370-8045. Follow her on Twitter at @hilton_annmarie.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Kaukauna High School adds sign to Galloping Ghost statue
