Voters to decide on new panther logo for Round Lake High

An updated panther head logo is coming to Round Lake High School, with online voters selecting from two options to make the decision.

With a major high school renovation and expansion about to start, Round Lake Area Unit District 116 officials said the time is right to have a professionally designed logo representing the Panthers nickname used in sports and other endeavors.

District 116 spokeswoman Heather Bennett said several variations of the panther head have been used at the high school. She said the differences can be seen on sports apparel, stationery and the district website.

"When we tried to address this issue, it became clear that there was a mixed bag of opinions when it came to the specific panther logo to use," Bennett said. "Some said they wanted to keep the tradition alive, while others said the panther needed some updating."

Students, alumni, employees and the community at large are asked to vote on the two panther heads on the District 116 website. Voting will go through Friday, June 5.

One choice will be a black-and-white panther head with its mouth wide open and showing teeth. The other head is slightly thinner and similar to the original with blue and gold school colors while also showing teeth. That option will have more whiskers than the black-and-white version.

Bennett said the logo will be used throughout the new-look high school. District 116 paid $712 to Grand Marketing Solutions in Lake Bluff for the design, development and editing of the two logos.

District 116 school board President Kevin Daniels said Thursday it's important to have the community involved in selecting the new panther head.

"The way I look at it is, it's part of the positive change we're making," Daniels said.

Bennett said 1,245 votes have been received since the effort began a little more than a week ago.