History of MCC's "Rudy" Rebel Mascot

In the formation of the new school district (Murray County Central) by combining the Slayton School District and the Chandler-Lake Wilson School District after the F5 tornado in 1992, students voted on a new mascot choosing “Rebels”. The name and mascot (Rudy) was tailored after the University of Nevada Las Vegas mascot, “Hey Reb” and for the popularity at the time of UNLV’s “Runnin Rebel” basketball team. The Hey Reb character was drawn and developed by Mike Miller in 1982, a celebrated Las Vegas artist. Miller stated that his inspiration for the cartoonish character figure came from and was modeled after the Western trailblazers of the 1800’s who ventured into uncharted Nevada to discover resources and build communities. “Pathfinders were severely independent people who went all around the West looking for new trails, agriculture, gold mining and everything.”

As listed on the UNLV website, the “Rebels” nickname reflects the tenacious attitude and relentless spirit of the school and a community that dares to be different. Rebels are independent, resilient, and at times unconventional. Rebels aren’t tied to the past, and they’re not intimidated by the future. The Rebel spirit lives on through a community imbued with a purpose and motivation that’s greater than the individual, a community of Rebels not afraid to take risks to make things happen.

In 2016, MCC’s mascot image was changed to the current cartoonish Rudy that eliminated the gun and flag from the original frontiersman’s uniform. This came about from concern about the image of a gun in school with the rise of school shootings at the time.

• Respect for all

• All students' ability to learn

• High academic expectations

• Kindness

• Strong communication

• Valuing every student

• Accountability

•Productive and interesting classrooms

• The essentialness of parental involvement

• Fair and consistent treatment of all