Posted on 05/06/2005 4:23:14 AM PDT by hispanarepublicana
Bolled over by alums, Tech backs off on new seal BY ELLIOTT BLACKBURN AVALANCHE-JOURNAL
The Texas Tech University System will return cotton's likeness to new designs of the school seal, an administrator said Thursday.
Associate Vice Chancellor Lynn Denton, the system's head of marketing, said the school will develop new designs of the school seal that include symbols representing cotton.
"We've decided that we are going to put cotton plants back into the seal," Denton said.
Alumni became alarmed earlier this week after speculation circulated the Internet that the school was downplaying the Double T logo and removing cotton from the seal.
Officials assured the Tech community that the Double T logo was in no danger of retirement but confirmed at a Wednesday news conference that there were plans to remove 10 cotton bolls crossing the school shield.
Updated and uniform school seals and shields would replace a confusing number of individual college and program logos.
The new designs were created as part of a broader marketing effort, developed over the last year and a half by firms in Lubbock, Austin and Chicago, to improve the school's national image.
The change angered many cotton farmers who graduated from Tech, including Plains Cotton Cooperative Association head Eddie Smith.
Smith was cautious about the announcement Thursday, but said it was encouraging.
"I think that's an excellent first step and then we'll just see how it develops from there," Smith said. "I think it just shows that Tech officials are, as they should be, sensitive to the alumni and the surrounding community."
Denton reported the decision after a two-hour presentation given to Steve Verett, Plains Cotton Growers Inc. executive vice president, and the John Johnson, spokesman for the Plains Cotton Cooperative Association.
Verett, a Tech alumnus, said he told administrators that the best solution would be to make minor improvements to the existing seal.
He supported the university's efforts to better market the school, and was pleased with a productive meeting, he said.
"We appreciate them being able to look at a compromise," Verett said. "It's my preference that the shield stay as it is today and still be used in their effort to move forward ."
Johnson also supported the university's re-branding efforts, but believed the best choice would be to return to the original seal.
"I advised the best way to stop the controversy is not to change the seal at all," Johnson said. "I work for 29,000 stockholders in a farmer-owned co-op, and they have not authorized me to negotiate."
The school seal was designed in 1927 and formally adopted in 1953. Ten cotton bolls representing the 10 cotton producing counties around Lubbock cross the shield.
Changes to the school shield were not part of the compromise. The new cotton image would be incorporated into the larger seal, Denton said.
The newest designs should be prepared in time for next week's Board of Regents meeting, Denton said.
To comment on this story:
elliott.blackburn@lubbockonline.com 766-8722
brian.williams@lubbockonline.com 766-8717
I could always vacation someplace a bit cooler and more scenic...... but God planned Odessa, just as he planned everyplace else......... ;^)
Well, I've never breast-fed, but I know it's just plain wrong and gross to breast-feed a six-year-old.
And, unlike the breast-feeding issue, I have actually BEEN to Lubbock, which is how I formed my opinion.
I'm very prickly lately because I'm just damn tired of being willfully misunderstood by people I know are smarter than that. And my friend Dix died this morning.
I had a difficult time imagining an avalanche in Lubbock.
Odessa does have some good places to eat. They actually compensate for the scenery...
Perhaps you might consider why people are misunderstanding your comments.
Your avalanche comment was pretty funny......... We used to have a sign that showed someone "skiing" on sand - with a caption of "Ski Lubbock"...... ;^)
You should make a trip here and see what has been done to this place. The TTU campus has increased (about ten new construction projects in as many years) in size and is rather scenic. We have had an unusual amount of rain recently so it is actually green here (:-)).
Wow! You're making a) it sound like I'd like it and b) an effort to be nice.
I appreciate both!
There used to a poster of someone standing, with a ski pole in either hand, in the middle of a flat cornfield. The caption was "Ski Nebraska".
Willful stupidity just makes me scratch my head and wonder why someone would choose to be stupid.
Very good! lol......... I have a dear friend from Nebraska - gotta love those farm boys....... ;^)
You just never know about some people........
I agree. I think the cross was the real offense. It always is.
Nevertheless, here is the letter I wrote Dr. Dean:
Dear Dr. Dean,
I have been reading about the proposed changes to the Texas Tech University seal. I saw what was purported to be the proposed "new seal". My first reaction to the "new seal" is that it is somewhat indistinguishable from the seal of many other academic institutions.
Then I looked more closely at the current seal for Texas Tech and it is unique, in my opinion, due to the cotton bowls in the form of a cross. I would be in favor of sharpening the design but I would be opposed to detracting from the symbolism on the current seal.
Chancellor Smith was quoted in the Lubbock AJ as having said, "You've got to decide that you're going to play in that larger sandbox". Well, that is not a very positive image nor is it a positive reason for spending $450,000.00 on this project. Contrarily, I suspect that spending $450,000.00 needs to be justified and therefore the "new seal" will be promoted as the answer to all the university's marketing needs. In actuality, it is just a most extreme example of symbolism lacking substance.
Hopefully, the decision will be re-considered.
Sincerely,
Well, I came here from San Antonio. When I arrived for undergrad, I was a bit shocked. However, the place has changed a lot over the years. I have some pics of the upgrades of campus if anyone wants to see them.
Your letter is nicer than mine. Mine opens with "Dear foul, petty bureaucrat" and devolves from there...
Mine referred to the waste of funds that should have been used to visit a few college fairs to actually promote the campus like they do in that "larger sandbox"......
Are you always so negative?
Try crisp clean cool night air all summer and fall. Leave open your windows and sleep like a baby. Winters taht don't feel so cold because of dry air. Snows enough to see what it is like. Sunsets that you can actually see. Fruits, vegetables that grow like crazy and good, hard working people. Lubbock is a good place to live.
That is the kind of stuff you learn when conducting research for grad papers. I came across that tid-bit when doing research on Reese AFB.
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