Principal irks locals by selling school's trophies

MALAD, Idaho, Sept. 23 (UPI) -- An Idaho high school principal said selling trophies earned by school athletes was meant to connect with the community, not sell out the school's heritage.

Some Malad residents accused Malad High School Principal John Cockett of selling out the school's heritage when he had trophies earned by school athletes during the past 60 years sold at a recent homecoming game, the Idaho State Journal reported Monday.

However, Cockett said the intention was to build ties between the school and the community.

"We wanted to get them out to the people connected to the trophies -- team members and coaches -- rather than [keeping them] in boxes," he said.

Cockett said the $5 price tag was designed to deter people without connections to the school from taking multiple trophies. He said the school did not have enough space for all of the trophies accumulated over the years.

The principal said no more trophies will be sold without the school board's approval.

"Some people thought this was a great idea, but others thought it was a sacrilege. That's unfortunate because it wasn't our intent," he said. "It was a good idea gone bad."