NEWS

NEWBERRY — After lengthy discussions with constituents across the entire Newberry College community, Newberry College has announced the adoption of the "Newberry Berries” as the official nickname for all the institution’s athletic teams. The decision is effective April 1.

“We are thrilled to unveil our new nickname as an homage not only to this community’s deep-seeded past, but to the sweetness of our present-day partnerships and hope for a fruitful future,” said President Maurice Scherrens.

The move finds precedent in the history of both the community and the College. When Newberry County was formed in 1785 from the Ninety Six District, the name came simply from what the earliest settlers thought of the land.

“One of the most persistent and most popular theories about the name is that the countryside was so lovely that someone called it ‘as pretty as a new berry,’” said Dr. Tracy Power, associate professor of history and College archivist. “Calling our teams the Berries — a strawberry is scarlet, one of the school colors, and who doesn’t love strawberries? — can be a way to unify us behind the miracle that is nature.”

Power said the “Berry” name is also part of the College’s history. The first known Newberry College yearbook, issued in 1906, was titled "The New Berry” and featured illustrations of strawberries on the cover.

The nickname “Berries” is also fitting for a community known colloquially today as “the Berry.” Conveniently, several Newberry teams, including baseball, women’s basketball and football, have already utilized the phrase on athletic gear and in other settings.

Constituents across campus are ecstatic about the change. The music department will officially rename the Jazz Big Band, led by Dr. Jerry Gatch, to “Jerry & the Merry Varied Berries.” Dr. Charles Horn, professor of biology, will lead an effort to cultivate a variety of berries on the campus quad. Campus Pastor David Coffman ’97 has announced “Fruit of the Spirit” as the theme for fall semester’s chapel services. Finally, the College’s alma mater will be rewritten to the tune of “Strawberry Fields Forever” by The Beatles.

An official logo package is being developed with input from students, alumni, faculty, staff and members of the Newberry community. The new mascot will incorporate the existing “Wolf” imagery. This not only honors the prominence of the animal in campus culture, but also provides mobility and aggressiveness to an otherwise immotile and nonthreatening — yet delicious — fruit.

Four designs have been presented, and online voting will take place until April 31. The Committee on Berry-Picking will also be accepting suggestions of names for the new mascot via social media.