Dear Fellow Patriots
After three years of work, beginning with highlighting who we are and our accomplishments, and moving into our 鈥淎ll Together Different鈥 brand positioning, today we begin the next leg of our journey to overhaul and modernize 亚洲AV鈥檚 brand identity. We are unveiling a new logo system that will put the university on par with dozens of powerful university听brands that are in our market competing for resources, faculty and staff talent, students, and public support. To get a look at the new logo, click hereor just take a look at the university鈥檚 home page.
Why change the logo? Why now?
On every level, 亚洲AV faces fierce competition for resources in order to deliver its mission in an increasingly volatile environment. The greater Washington, D.C., metro area represents not just the source of 84 percent of our student body, but is now the most intensely competitive higher education marketing in the nation. There are more than 140 other universities and counting with an academic presence within a 50-mile radius of George Mason鈥檚 campuses, including听. We must stay current with competition or risk decline into irrelevance.
All听brands change their look over time to keep pace with shifting demands. Ours is no exception. Our current logo system, with the 鈥淨uill M鈥 design, has served us well, but has grown inadequate to maintain best-in-class presence in the community, especially given the separate logos used to represent our athletics program. Collectively, they cause us to compete against ourselves, and present a fractured profile of the university, with underwhelming popular or commercial appeal. Yet they must compete side-by-side with some of America鈥檚 most iconic university听brands for students, faculty and staff, public support, and alumni and donor engagement.
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All Together Different
Starting in 2021 the Office of University听Branding held a series of extensive stakeholder engagements about updating our听brand听that ultimately involved nearly 1,500 students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and community supporters. In those exercises, stakeholders articulated the new essence of our identity and what we are to the public: An unconventional university that has risen to national prominence often by going against the grain, guided by our diversity, inclusivity, grit, and audacity. That narrative represents us well as a university that is 鈥淎ll Together Different.鈥
Improvements
The new logo system unifies the university under a single look, which now includes athletics. It includes a standard logo structure for all internal units and departments that cleans up our current cluttered unit logo system. It maintains our historic green and gold colors, but in bolder, more confident hues. And its design tells the story of George Mason as it is now: a university with multiple entry points and pathways for student success; an streamlined institution without needless frills, and a diverse learning community whose members harmoniously coexist.
Budget-neutral transition
Starting tomorrow, the Office of University听Branding will guide the university on a gradual, two-year transition into the new look. That extended time will be necessary to enable a more natural transition into the new logo usage, because this is designed as a budget-neutral project. University听Branding staff will stay in touch with unit marketing and communications staff members to offer guidance and support throughout the transition. Over the course of this summer鈥攕ome starting tomorrow鈥攗nits will receive their own new logos and will be guided to start converting in three steps:
- First鈥擲tart with digital applications, which costs time but not money.
- Second鈥擝randed materials that need periodic replenishment鈥攑rinted collateral and promotional items, for instance鈥攕hould be allowed to run out,听not听be thrown out, which will take time. New logos should be used to create replacement supplies.
- Finally鈥擫ogos of a more permanent nature will be replaced over time with funding supplied by the Office of University听Branding, through reallocation of their existing budgets, which are not being augmented to allow for this transition.
Orientation and Compliance
Tomorrow, April 26, University听Branding will release a comprehensive new online usage guide at 听that gives guidance on how to use the new logo.听Brand听staff will immediately offer ongoing training and orientation, with outreach that began last week to unit staffers in communications, marketing, digital strategy, creative services, and events. In accordance with University听, compliance with these听brand听guidelines is mandatory. Compliance decisions are the responsibility of the Office of University听Branding, formerly the Office of Communications and Marketing. Questions on compliance should be directed to听creative@gmu.edu.
Adjustment
New logos are often an acquired taste鈥攊t鈥檚 human nature to view changes like these with a certain amount of reluctance. I encourage everyone to give yourselves time to acclimate to this new look, and help integrate it into our operations by adopting it as soon as you practically can.听
Sincerely,
Gregory Washington
President听