School portraits / Senior mascot reveal · Marlborough, Los Angeles, fall 2023
Marlborough's Seniors Speed-Dated Their Mascot Candidates
Every year the senior class at the Los Angeles girls' school chooses a mascot that represents them. In 2023 it was a chameleon from a Disney movie. In 2025 it was a bear with a marmalade sandwich.
At Marlborough School in Los Angeles, each senior class chooses a mascot meant to embody its personality. In fall 2023, the class of 2024 spent its class meetings hearing pitches, judging how well each candidate fit and voting.
To show the deliberation, the class made a short film in which the class president went speed-dating with various mascot candidates. Some did not resonate. Others were an imperfect fit. Then she sat down with a classmate in a green onesie playing Pascal, the chameleon from Disney's Tangled, and it clicked.
Speed-dating as a selection process. I have sat on hiring committees that could have used this.
After the film, to applause and laughter, the president explained the choice. "Like my classmates, Pascal is a loyal friend who constantly uplifts those around him, prioritizing collaboration over competition." A chameleon, she added, adapts. And the class, like Pascal, was small but mighty.
In October 2025 the class of 2026 chose Paddington Bear and turned up at the all-school meeting in blue duffle coats and red bucket hats with fuzzy bear ears. Class representatives explained. Paddington steps into new worlds with curiosity and courage. Things don't always go his way. He is kind. And, several of them mentioned, to knowing laughter, there is the ever-present snack table outside the senior lounge, which led nicely to the marmalade sandwich Paddington keeps for emergencies.
Kindness, curiosity, courage and a snack table. That is a mascot built on accurate self-knowledge.
Every senior class picks the animal it wishes it were. Every family picks the animal it actually is.
At dinner I proposed we choose a family mascot. The middle one nominated a raccoon, because we eat late and leave the kitchen a mess. The eldest nominated a cat, because nobody in this family comes when called. The youngest nominated the dog, who was under the table and seemed honored. My wife nominated a chameleon, because, she said, I agree with whoever spoke last.
We held a vote. I voted for the chameleon. Then I voted for the dog. The dog won, by one vote, which may have been mine.
Sources
The public records, school pages and published accounts this story draws on. Where the story imagines a scene or a line of dialogue, that is the column’s telling, not a quotation.
- The Class of 2024’s Mascot, Marlborough marlborough.org
- Please Look After This Bear, Marlborough marlborough.org
- Marlborough public student and alumna reviews niche.com