Have you ever googled "American Eagles" in search of our school and noticed that you just get results about the clothing brand American Eagle? Have you ever felt as if "American Eagles" is the most generic name a school named after America could be called? Have you ever felt disconnected with our school's nickname?

Today I propose a new nickname for The American University in Washington, DC: Wonks. A nickname should be something that a group or people can identify with, something unique. Thousands of high school teams and professional teams across the world are called the Eagles. No one is called "Wonk". Made up words and fun phrases have been the pride and joy of institutions near and far, from Georgetown with their nickname "Hoya Saxon", which literally just means "What Rocks", to Indiana, with their made up word of "Hoosier". These nicknames have a story behind them, a sense of pride and community is built on a unique aspect of the schools.

The great thing about nicknames like these, is they don't need to affect the mascot we have. What is a Hoya Saxon? Apparently a Pit Bull. It really doesn't matter, schools simply find a mascot that doesn't really have to have anything to do with the nickname, therefore Clawed Z. Eagle and American University logos can stay the same, minimizing costs to the university. This would simply officially change the name of our teams to "Wonks" instead of "Eagles".

If you feel like the sense of pride and community at this school is lacking and you would love to see a new culture emerge from our fine institution, join us on this journey of making American University's nickname a unique and meaningful rally cry for all of us. Thank you and Go Wonks.