After students have seen the same banners and themes across campus over the years, it may be time for Capital University to update their branding.
I am now in my sixth semester at Capital, and I am beyond tired and annoyed of the branding on campus, specifically, the “Today, Tomorrow” banners. If you are confused or can’t recall what I’m talking about, the banners indicate that you are taking an academic class today, but then the world is your oyster tomorrow.
After a frigid walk across campus, I recorded nearly all of the banners that are on display. I have never been a fan of the banners since my admission at Capital, but, after seeing most of them, they are entirely ludicrous. Over the years, I have put more time and research into what the banners are actually saying. A popular banner that students make fun of is “Today: UC 150 (global awareness), Tomorrow: Global Awareness.” Many students aren’t aware of the curriculum that is posted on the banners unless they have taken the classes. Most students are only aware of the “Tomorrow” result.
Examples of interesting banners are: “Today: Poli Sci 380 (public opinion and political behavior), Tomorrow: Nobel Peace Prize,” “Today: Sports Science: 362 (sports marketing), Tomorrow: Rethinking the running shoe,” “Today: Nursing 202 (this class doesn’t exist anymore), Tomorrow: Healer,” “Today: Physics 433 (modern physics), Tomorrow: Rocket Scientist,” “Today: 060 (Chapel Choir), Tomorrow: Broadway,” and “Today: Sociology 110 (principles of sociology), Tomorrow: Habitat for Humanity.”
Ologie is the branding agency that Capital University hired in 2010 to rebrand several aspects of the university. Based on their website, Ologie identifies their purpose as “helping companies, institutions, and organizations discover their authentic story and find their true voice.” Through the research process, Ologie identified Capital as goal driven and focused on setting goals and following through with them, hence the “I Will…” campaign.
The goal driven attitude that Ologie pursued is very apparent in the “Today, Tomorrow” banners. The goals, though, are incredibly outlandish. The banners are inconsistent in the types of goals you should be aiming to achieve. As stated before, one class will help prepare a student to get a Nobel Peace Prize tomorrow, while another class will help you get involved with Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit that anyone–with no specific level of education–can get involved with.
The banners sometimes give goals that are applicable and foreseeable without some extraordinary level of genius such as “Today: Business 315 (entrepreneurship), Tomorrow: Entrepreneur” or “Today: Public Relations 161 (introduction to public relations), Tomorrow: Media Liason,” but the majority of them are statistically nearly impossible to achieve; it would be a success if any Capital student accomplished one of the goals in 20 years.
I don’t mean to be a pessimistic or unlikable realist. Every day when I see the banners across campus, I feel as if my institution is lying to me somehow. When we first came here, we realized Capital wasn’t Ivy League. I have great goals and want to defy the odds just as much as the other dedicated student but seeing banners that tell me my class today will connect me to my miraculous future tomorrow doesn’t help.
Some of the banners include classes that no longer exist in Capital’s course bulletin. Some classes chosen for the banners are not the best choice for the desired future either. Chapel Choir is listed as the way to get to Broadway in New York, which doesn’t make sense at all. Chapel Choir is more beneficial to being a music educator than to acting, singing, and dancing on Broadway. A more appropriate class would be “History of Musical Theatre” or “Opera/Musical Theatre,” where students study actual history of musical theatre or how to perform musical theatre.
Regardless of the exaggeration of some of the goals, it is apparent that the branding should be updated and redone across campus.
“I’ve been here for three years and [the banners] haven’t changed,” said Caleb Ray, junior public relations major. “You go to other universities, and they change every few months. It isn’t a good reflection of the university to potential students.”
“It would be better if the banners were actual success stories of Capital graduates,” Kassie Mallory, senior public relations major, said. “They would be a representation of what we as students can work toward and know is possible.”
Ologie researched and worked toward representing the authentic voice of Capital University; do the banners represent you? Read through some of the banners to see if you agree with the classes and their goals.
