Over the past two years, a team from University Communications, Athletics and the Nebraska Alumni Association worked to pursue a single N icon across the university. The new icon, the Nebraska N, went into effect July 1.
The transition to a single icon will allow all university departments to benefit from greater clarity of identity in local, national and international markets.
Newly created tools and resources are available to the university community to assist in the transition to the Nebraska N.
The UNL Licensing and Branding Department has launched the UNL Licensing website. Developed with extensive advice and consultation from faculty and staff, it provides specific guidelines and standards needed for the implementation of Nebraska’s new icon.
University Communications has developed the Lockup Factory to assist departments in creating official lockups. An icon lockup combines the Nebraska N icon with text describing a university department or unit into one scalable image. This allows the text to be “locked in” to the correct position and size next to the Nebraska N in order to keep design consistent across the university.
There are also new guidelines for merchandising programs and product designs that have been put in place to safeguard UNL’s intellectual property and satisfy the university’s graphic standards.
Campus departments planning to display university trademarks or specific department logos for campus merchandising programs or promotions must review all proposals with the Licensing and Branding Department to obtain authorization for use.
All merchandising activity, apparel or promotional items must be purchased through a company licensed with UNL. The university has a number of licensees that specialize in working with university programs and departments.
All designs intended for merchandise must be approved by the Licensing and Branding Department before production to ensure consistency in the use of UNL trademarks. In most cases, the manufacturer can submit the design for approval on behalf of the organization or department. Artwork can be approved through the online request form.
UNL departments, groups and registered student organizations may not assign trademark usage rights, or otherwise grant permission, to any other internal or external entity for any purpose without prior review and approval by the Licensing and Branding Department.
To help mitigate potential issues during the transition to the new Nebraska N, all university departments are encouraged to review the website and familiarize themselves with the new guidelines. Questions about the transition, tools and guidelines can be forwarded to Lonna Kliment, the Nebraska athletic department’s director of licensing and branding, at 402-472-7693 or lkliment@huskers.com.
