Today President Joseph Sheley shared a definitive identity for California State University, Stanislaus.  During his annual address at 11 a.m. in Snider Hall, Sheley revealed the new campus logo, motto and official name.  

The University has used the seal as the logo in years past, however as promised in his address last fall, Sheley worked alongside a branding team and committee of members to develop a logo with the two things that stood out most from the seal; the “S” and the shied, now split on the new logo.

“The strength of the split shield, is that it allows us to be bold and contemporary,” Sheley said.  “Ultimately this logo will serve as a family crest as we march toward our 60th year. Not only does it provide us with the opportunity to take pride in our generational history, but its contemporary look and feel gives us strength moving forward.”

The committee also was responsible for creating an official naming convention. President Sheley explained the formal name, California State University, Stanislaus, would remain, and has also adopted less formal and informal names. For the  less formal, the campus will be referred to as “Stanislaus State,” while the term of endearment and the name most locals would use is “Stan State.”

Finally, a third element in the new branding strategy was creating an official motto for the University, chosen to be “Engaging. Empowering. Transforming.”

In line with transformation is the notable growth the University is experiencing.

Sheley said, “Stan State is permitted to increase its enrollment by 4.6 percent, that’s a real victory for us.  It’s significant not only in terms of increased college access for students in our region, but with the budget relief that increased enrollment brings.  It’s not huge, but it helps a lot.”

The University is not only looking to grow in numbers, but is expanding in its fame across the nation.  President Sheley reminded the community that though the campus be but small in the Central Valley, it should take pride in the brand it is creating for itself, such as being named the top public university in the nation.

“This affirms our sense of pride,” Sheley said. “We are here making a difference. We are less and less the best kept secret, and that’s a good thing.”

For a more developed story behind the 3-part branding and details on Sheley’s address, look out for the print edition of The Signal on Thursday, Sept. 3.