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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, April 29, 2003

UH logos generate praise, complaints

By Beverly Creamer
Advertiser Education Writer

The University of Hawai'i has received more than 1,000 e-mails in an outpouring of opinion since two proposed new UH logos were unveiled last week.


Reaction falls into three general categories: those who are leaning toward the "Spectrum" design, those leaning toward the "Wave" and those complaining about the cost, the process and because a Hawai'i firm wasn't selected, said UH spokeswoman Kate Wester. She declined to say how many responses fell into each category.

An Internet petition drive, meanwhile, calls for retaining the university's longtime seal for the logo instead of adopting anything new.

"In any situation like this you are going to have negative feedback and we expected that from the beginning," Wester said. "We still have room for refinement. But going back to the drawing board and starting completely over is not an option."

The university has not begun categorizing the responses and won't until after midnight Friday when the comment period ends, so it's unclear how many of those responses are favorable. Wester is one of the 29-member Review Committee that will make a final recommendation to the Board of Regents at its May 15-16 meeting. Regents will make the final decision.

"That's going to be one of the challenges, of categorizing this feedback," Wester said.

To comment
But, she said, people expressing an either/or opinion appear to be leaning toward the "Spectrum."

Wester said that along with the 1,000 e-mails, the UH Web page with the logos has had 4,000 hits.

Responding to those who question why a Hawai'i firm wasn't chosen, Vice President for External Affairs Paul Costello, who initiated the branding project, released the names and bids of local firms who applied, including:

Clarence Lee Designs, $48,000-$78,000; Design Logix, $463,000; Stuart Henley (a faculty member), $127,000; UCI Inc., $98,000; Dale Vermeer Designs, $93,000; Eric Woo Design Inc., $80,000; Design Asylum Inc., $17,000.

The winning firm, Robert Rytter and Associates, of Baltimore, bid $82,000.

Costello said the university sent out 21 notices to firms known to specialize in college logos. Seven Hawai'i and seven Mainland firms responded and all gave presentations, he said.

"We asked people to bring in design concepts and some did and some didn't," Costello said. "Most people just came in and talked about a logo. Rytter presented the wide range of ways a graphic design could be utilized and that's basically why they won the bid. He talked about a template design, applications for the Web, for clothing, for signage, with Hawaiian language included in signage."

In addition to the barrage of opinion to the official e-mail site, an Internet petition soliciting comments had 587 signatures — largely critical — as of 5 p.m. yesterday. But the petition endorses retaining the current UH seal as the logo.

The UH seal was never intended for the scrap heap, Costello has said. It will remain in use on diplomas, while the proposed new logo will be used as a marketing tool on brochures and letterhead (as stocks are depleted) and on official vehicles.

Though the Internet petition drive is based on a faulty premise, many responding suggest that planners should have turned to UH art or design students and professors for ideas, given the contract to a local firm rather than a Mainland firm or spent the $82,000 on something "educational" such as financial aid or new computers.

It's unclear who organized the petition.