As the oldest institution of higher education in South Carolina and one of a handful of schools established during America’s colonial era, the College knows a little something about history. In fact, the College knows a lot about it. Whether you graduated 50 years ago, 25 years ago or just last May, you couldn’t help but feel connected to the generations of students that preceded you when you proudly crossed the Cistern stage to receive your diploma against the magnificent backdrop of Randolph Hall.
That appreciation for the past served as a guiding light for the College as it reimagined its athletics marks this summer – a process that coincided with its entrance into a new athletics conference, the Colonial Athletic Association.
“Like our decision to move to the CAA, the rebranding process was thorough and thoughtful,” Director of Athletics Joe Hull says. “Our new athletics logo gives us an opportunity to build on our brand identity on a local, regional and national level. When our coaches and student-athletes step onto a playing field or into a gym, we need an identifiable mark that sets us apart and sends a strong message that ‘We Are Charleston.’”
Led by Charleston-based Gil Shuler Graphic Design, the process incorporated the thoughts and feelings of students, faculty, staff, student-athletes, coaches and alumni. “We wanted to stay true to the College,” says Gil Shuler. “But at the same time, we wanted to create a mark that becomes the College’s foundation, its strength. We found this old letter C that we grasped onto: It was simple, strong and had longevity.”
The new athletics logo incorporates a clean block C with a serif that can be traced back to several different decades (1890s, 1920s, 1940s and 1960s). Alternate versions of the new logo that incorporate “The College” and “Cougars” were developed for multi-use on in-game gear and merchandise.
“As the College receives more national exposure in the Colonial conference and in top media markets such as New York, Boston and Philadelphia, this rebranding could not have come at a better time,” President P. George Benson observes. “The new logo conveys the College’s history and traditions while also providing us with a distinguishable identity among the other academically elite schools of the Colonial.”
And with this new simple, classic logo, Cougars fans will discover that history, when it comes to the College, is definitely worth repeating.
