Board selects Rankin Elementary mascot

The Rankin Raptors will rip into the 2018-19 school year when Kalispell Public Schools opens the doors of its sixth elementary school.

The dinosaur mascot was selected at a school board meeting Tuesday along with the school colors purple, silver and white.

Before the holiday break the elementary schools were tasked with nominating a mascot and school colors for Rankin Elementary currently under construction on Airport Road. Some schools voted for the raptors, while others voted for raccoons or ravens as potential mascots.

Flatau said the idea is to enlist high school students to help develop what the mascot and logo will look like.

The board also approved a recommendation naming a road the district was required to build on the school property “Wise Way” after longtime Kalispell businessman Doug Wise. At one time, Wise had been the landowner of the Rankin Elementary site, according to the school district. He had also been a student in Kalispell Public Schools.

The recommendation came from the committee involved in naming the new elementary school. The name will be submitted to the city of Kalispell for approval.

Wise owned and operated Sykes, a Kalispell market and diner, for about 64 years.

“If you’ve lived in Kalispell long enough you know the landmark that Sykes is,” Flatau said.