Richland College’s halls are filled with fresh-faced freshmen, learning how to take flight in their prospective careers. Lake Highlands High School graduate Charlie Vann may not have mastered the skills for his film career, but as for taking flight, Richland College has given him the wings to soar — as school mascot Moby the ThunderDuck. Vann is the first person on campus to consistently don the costume and was the first ever to try out for the gig. “It was up to the cheerleaders to decide,” Vann says. "I dressed in athletic wear and played music and danced around; I acted goofy. I just wanted to be involved and entertain people." Because Richland is a community college, Vann knows firsthand that sports and clubs on campus have a hard time garnering support from its commuter students. "A lot of times, it’s the other teams that bring a crowd here," he says. So Vann works with the cheer squad and dance team to rally support with his crazy antics and pyramid stunts at the basketball games. “We are trying to push people to want to do stuff so that there’s always activity around here.” Vann will finish up his work at Richland this summer and hopes to carry on his mascot work at the University of North Texas, taking over the role of Scrappy the Eagle. “Scrappy is as rowdy as they come; the kids line up to see him,” Vann says. “North Texas is pretty big with school spirit, and I’m definitely planning on trying out to be Scrappy.”

Sign up for our newsletter!

* indicates required