The sun in California State University Northridge’s “CSUN” moniker will shine a little brighter now that the college has accepted it in the official logo. Long referred by students and alumni as “C-SUN,” the university rolled out the new logo last month as part of a $500,000 marketing campaign to raise the school’s image. The letters in “SUN” are connected in the logo and the “C” subtly stands alone. It’s also a play on words that attempts to reference the “sunny” aesthetic of the Southern California region, said Jeffrey Noblitt, associate vice president for marketing and communications. “We were really doing a disservice to the university by not embracing the name CSUN,” he said. “We are the only CSU campus where you can actually pronounce our name.” The university worked with school alumni and Newport Beach branding agency 160over90 to develop the graphic over the course of a year. The idea of embracing the school’s nickname had been considered for some time, and when President Dianne Harrison arrived in 2012, she signed off on the idea. The thinking was that Cal State Northridge’s visibility didn’t match its enrollment of about 40,000 students, which makes it one of the state’s largest universities. “We are huge and we have a huge impact,” Noblitt said. “We want our region to know about that.” There was a soft launch of the logo over the last few weeks, but this month it will expand with advertising on billboards, digital platforms and print. Some will highlight a few of the school’s accolades, including its recent No. 9 ranking by Money Magazine, as one of the best value colleges, and a citation from the Hollywood Reporter as a top film school. “It’s not for ego or just to be better known, but there is really strong, valid institutional value in having a stronger, better design,” Noblitt said. – Mateo Melero
