The Student Government Association will kick off a contest to create a new Colonels mascot image for the University on Jan. 30 at 11:30 a.m. in the snack bar area of the student union.According to SGA President Damian Breaux, the kickoff was scheduled for last semester but was postponed after Hurricane Katrina until the spring semester.
Nicholls students, faculty, staff and alumni are eligible to participate in the contest. The contest period begins on Monday and ends on Mar. 8.
The SGA will put together a selection committee that will judge all entries. The judges will be looking for a Colonels image that represents the University. Breaux said that this contest is not a search for a new mascot, only for a new mascot image.
“For almost 50 years, Nicholls has been represented by the Colonel. That name holds a lot of history,” Breaux said in a SGA press release. “By no means are we going to change the name Colonels; we only hope to find a mascot image that better suits the University in this time of change.”
The selection committee will choose the top three entries, which will appear on the spring ballot for student elections, Breaux said. All fee-paying students will have the opportunity to choose one of the three entries. The entry that receives the most votes will then be sent to the University administration for final approval.
The mascot image that is chosen will be officially released on Crawfish Day. The image will be displayed and the winner announced at about 1:30 p.m. The winner of the mascot image contest will receive a prize, but Breaux is waiting to announce what the prize is at Monday’s contest kickoff.
“A huge incentive for entering this contest should be that your image will be used in the future as the image of the Nicholls State Colonels,” Breaux said. “That’s the real prize.”
Eventually, the mascot image will be developed into a three-dimensional character, but until then the image will only be on flat surfaces, Breaux said.
“I’m hoping to get a big vinyl banner to use until we get a 3-D caricature,” Breaux said. “It may take some time (getting the image in 3-D) depending on the image.”
Breaux said that students on campus have already expressed an interest in participating in the contest and that he is working on getting other students involved.
“An RA (resident assistant) in one of the dorms found out about it and will be incorporating it into one of his activities in the hall,” Breaux said. “I had approached one of the graphic design instructors about incorporating it into a class project.”
The SGA was chosen to be responsible for the recreation of the Colonels mascot image by University President Stephen Hulbert after the marketing and rebranding committee released the new logos for the University, Breaux said.
According to Breaux, this is not the first time the University was without an official mascot. Breaux said that the University did not have an official mascot for the first seven or eight years of the University until the SGA declared the Colonels the University’s official mascot in 1957.
“Along with the image, a written description will be required to describe the image,” Breaux said. “For those who are not artistic, they can make up for it with writing.”
All entries must be in the SGA office by 4 p.m. on March 8 in order to be considered. Entries can be sent to the SGA through the mail, E-mail or in person. For more information, contact the SGA office at (985) 448-4557.
