Documents reveal that discussions about replacing Columbia College's Claim Jumpers mascot have been ongoing for at least four years, driven by concerns over its ties to gold rush-era colonialism and cultural insensitivity. Interim President Chad Redwing has voiced support for the change, though he frames a recent survey as addressing low merchandise sales and school spirit. A workgroup is now reviewing survey responses to select a new symbol aligned with the college's core values.
Columbia College in Tuolumne County, California, is advancing efforts to potentially replace its long-standing Claim Jumpers mascot, with records indicating the push began years earlier than recently suggested by administrators.
The mascot, featuring a gold miner with crossed pick-axes, honors Leland “Billy Goat” Davis, who filed three mining claims in the 1930s on the land where the campus now stands. Davis, a naturalist known for growing crops and raising goats, lived in a house built for him by the college until his death at age 91 in January 1985. A 1973 campus newspaper article explained that the name derives from the college "jumping" one of Davis's claims during construction in 1966, though he retained life tenure on part of the property.
Concerns surfaced formally in a 2021 Academic Senate resolution, which argued the mascot evokes the gold rush's associations with "stealing, clandestine activities," violent colonialism against Indigenous peoples, and oppression of non-white groups and women—misalignments with the college's core values. The resolution was tabled indefinitely in January 2022 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
A 2024 Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging Action Plan outlined a phased mascot change over 3.5 years, beginning with a student survey. The Academic Senate's November newsletter noted that Interim President Chad Redwing, appointed in July, expressed "strong support for DEIA work including changing our mascot" during an October meeting.
However, Redwing emphasized in an interview that the recent survey targets merchandise shortages and low school spirit, not directly cultural issues: “Even as an interim president, one of the big problems I see is there’s not a lot of Claim Jumper merchandise in town, and I want to know why.”
The DEIA Committee formed a 16-member workgroup in October, approved by the College Council and student government. The survey, sent earlier this month, seeks input on new options excluding imagery tied to race, religion, politics, Indigenous elements, or colonization. Responses are due January 30, with voting planned for February and a final decision targeted by spring's end.
