A newly designed logo for the University of California system has prompted outcry among students and alumni.
As of Saturday, an online petition started by some students and alumni has already gained 29,462 signatures in support of dropping the redesigned logo. The petition states that the new logo “no longer resonates with the University’s values or prestige.”
Various “Stop the UC Logo Change” Facebook pages have also cropped up since awareness of new logo became widespread last week.
According to the Oakland Tribune, the logo was “quietly introduced last month” as an effort by the university to rebrand itself and raise awareness. The revamped logo already features prominently in the university’s Onward California campaign webpage and replaces the old Victorian seal with a simpler and more contemporary design.
“What we have tried to do is to create a mark that is iconic, flexible, and solid enough that it works to represent the UC system as a whole,” said UCOP Director of Marketing and Communications James Simon in a statement to the petition organizers.
While Simon said in his statement that the university will continue to use the old seal on official documents, some students are still not so eager to embrace the logo as the UC system’s new look.
“It kind of looks like a cheap advertisement,” said UC Berkeley sophomore Nisha Puri. “If you saw it, you would never think that that was for a university.”
Justin Abraham is a news editor. Contact him at [email protected].