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Stanford TreeThe Stanford Tree is the unofficial mascot of Stanford University. Stanford's team name is "the Cardinal," referring to the reddish color (not the bird), and the school has no official mascot. The Tree is a member of the Leland Stanford Junior (pause) University Marching Band (LSJUMB) and appears at football games, basketball games, and other events where the Band performs. The "Tree" is representative of El Palo Alto, the tree that appears on the official seal of the University, and the logo of the city of Palo Alto. Between 1930 and 1972, Stanford was known as the "Indians." From 1951 until 1972, "Prince Lightfoot" (Timm Williams, a member of the Yurok tribe) performed as the mascot with the LSJUMB. In 1972, Native American students and staff successfully lobbied University President Richard Lyman to abolish the Indian mascot. Stanford's teams reverted unofficially to the name "Cardinal", the color that had represented the school before 1930. For the following nine years, Stanford's students and administrations debated what mascot and team name should replace the Indian. Popular suggestions included the Robber Barons, Huns, and Griffins. Finally, in 1981, University President Donald Kennedy declared that the team names would officially remain "the Cardinal". In 1975, the Stanford Band performed a halftime show that suggested (in jest) several possible mascot candidates: the Steaming Manhole, the French Fry, and of course, the Tree. The Tree received so much positive attention that the Band decided to make it a permanent fixture. For the first decade, the role of the Tree was generally performed by the Band managers' girlfriends; in the mid-1980's, however, the Band adopted a more formal selection process for its Trees. Today's Tree candidates must go through grueling and humiliating physical and mental challenges to show that he or she has sufficient chutzpah to be the Tree. During "Tree Week", candidates are known for performing crazy and apparently dangerous stunts; so much so that the University has felt the need to prohibit certain types of audition activities over the years. Individuals who served as the Tree since 1995-1996 - 1995-1996: Christopher Jeffrey Bonzon
- 1996-1997: Christopher A. Cary
- 1997-1998: Matthew James Merrill
- 1998-1999: Christopher Matthew Henderson
- 1999-2000: Evan Fletcher Meagher
- 2000-2001: Alexandra Mary Newell
- 2001-2002: Charles Monroe Armstrong
- 2002-2003: Andrew Charles Parker
- 2003-2004: William Robert Rothacker, Jr.
- 2004-2005: Daniel Isaac Salier-Hellendag
- 2005-2006: Erin Wright Lashnits
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