Ten With Ken (audio)

This week, Ken completes his 3-part review of higher ed branding in 2015 with a look at “New Names & Nicknames,” from DMZ to uVic! (Part 1 was “Cautionary Tales & Cautious Rebrandings” https://youtu.be/m2LF3rGiMLc . Part 2 was “Bold New Brands of 2015” https://youtu.be/pxmRfUfzZ5o .) Without a doubt, institutions are loathe to lose decades of brand equity and recognition by changing their names. Generally it occurs only when the institution’s mandate has changed significantly, such as when a college gains university status, or an institute becomes a polytechnic. (Most recently it was SIAST becoming Saskatchewan Polytechnic.) For years we’ve also seen a pretty widespread trend toward dropping adjectives like “regional” and “community” from college names, and minimizing or eliminating the use of the word “college” itself. Last spring, Saskatchewan’s Southeast Regional College launched a bright new brand identity without the word “Regional.” The AUCC rechristened itself “Universities Canada” last year, l