SOCH Seeks New Design for Logo

In an effort to increase interest in new student space in the Quad, administrators are calling on undergraduates to redesign the face of the space.

In a competition that the Student Organization Center at Hilles (SOCH) is co-sponsoring with Harvard Media Ventures, students are being challenged to create a new logo that embodies the center’s stating mission of supporting student group initiatives.

The winning designer will receive an iPod as well as a paid job designing SOCH’s new Web site, according to SOCH Manager David R. Friedrich. The selected design will then be used on T-shirts, Nalgene bottles, and other SOCH paraphernalia.

Media Ventures President Margaret K. Hsu ’08 said the competition will allow students to be further involved in the center, particularly after some undergraduates had said they had not been sufficiently involved in the initial planning process for the space.

“The big thing that we’ve been hearing is that students didn’t have a lot of input when the SOCH was being built,” said Hsu, who is also a Crimson editor. “Now, the question is how students can continue to have input now that the SOCH is here.”

Despite efforts to encourage more student involvement, many undergraduates still find distance to be the greatest detriment to the center’s success.

“It’s not really about how good the place is, or the logo, the facilities, or even the free coffee—it’s just the distance,” said Elissa Leechawengwongs ’09, a member of the Harvard International Business Club.

Another student, David P. Ramos ’08, added that “while asking students for input on a logo design is well-intended, it definitely isn’t enough as far as involving the students.”

“The logo really isn’t such a big factor,” Ramos said.

Yet Friedrich said he hoped the logo design competition would help define the purpose and identity of the center. For example, one of his primary concerns was clarifying the pronunciation of “SOCH.”

“SOCH rhymes with ‘rock,’” he said. “We discussed many possible ways to get the word out about this, including stuffing every student’s mailbox with a sock to remind them.”

Friedrich also said that a great “selling point” for the competition is the potential for a student to “brand an institution.”

Logo designs must be submitted by April 15. Students will vote on the submitted logos through the SOCH Web site, and the winner will be decided based on both a popular vote and the consideration of the SOCH Advisory Board.

The winning logo will be unveiled on May 2.

—Staff writer Elaine Chen can be reached at chen23@fas.harvard.edu.