CURRENTS

This September the University will officially launch its new logo, one piece of a much larger and completely revamped graphic identity. For returning students, the first signs of change may come from a visit to the bookstore. Sweatshirts, decals, and all manner of merchandise will bear the new design. However, the change goes much deeper and will have a much broader impact. In effect, the logo is the University’s new face to the world.

A strong graphic identity “creates a reinforced impression,” says Vice President for Communications Bill Murphy. Organizations strive for a consistent graphic look and must retool their logos when that consistency breaks down. Rochester is just one university involved in the redesign process now. Boston University is another.

“Repetition is a very big part of what makes a brand successful,” says Boston University’s assistant vice president for strategic communications, Joel Seligman (no relation to the University president). “You don’t let departments just use their own accounting systems. It’s the same for communications. We can do it differently, but it’s not as effective as if we’re doing it all together.”

Faculty, staff, students, alumni, administrators, and others participated in the year-long process of reinventing Rochester’s “signature.” The result unites all of the University’s schools and affiliates with a single graphic appearance.

To achieve such harmony at Rochester, Murphy brought together people throughout the University to consider what they wanted from a logo. The needs of the College, the Medical Center, and the Memorial Art Gallery, for example, were quite different.

Nevertheless, simplicity was key. “All a logo needs to do is remind you of the thing it’s representing,” graphics coordinator Michael Osadciw says.

“People said they really wanted something distinctive, which the designers took to mean bold and daring,” Murphy says. “But when they saw those designs, it was clear from people’s reactions that they wanted something strongly traditional, something that said we belong in the top tier of American research institutions.”

In early fall 2006, Murphy presented top alternatives to faculty, administrators, and students, who participated in special “town meetings” to give their views.

“How the University is represented is important to students, and their turn-out showed that,” Associate Dean of Students Anne-Marie Algier says. To her surprise, students did not favor the contemporary designs. They preferred the more traditional options that denoted a “dignified, serious research university.”

Designers then developed an entirely new set of choices, again consulting with faculty, students, and staff. The University posted final designs on the Web, and more than 10,000 respondents voted for their favorite design.

A single design was the favorite of more than 50 percent of the responders in every constituent group. With a few additional tweaks, the logo was complete.

“One thing about the coat of arms [in the new logo] that is unusual is that the three symbols are in circles on the shield. That’s distinctive to the University of Rochester, and people really wanted to retain that,” Murphy says, and to include the founding date.

“And the word on the banner in the new logo is Meliora. I think it’s one of the strongest mottos a university could hope for,” he adds.

The logo—along with a newly developed “spirit mark” for athletics—will be available on apparel and other items for sale in the River Campus bookstore in time for student orientation in August. It will also begin to appear on University publications, letterhead, and campus signs after its official launch on September 5.

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