Badin High School reveals new branding, logos

The academic logo has been changed from the school’s standard of Father Stephen T. Badin, a local missionary who became the nation’s first ordained Catholic priest and the school’s namesake, on a horse, to an image of his hand carrying a cross over a shield.

“The image of him holding the cross is more effective of (showing) the work that he did in the area, and of the image of the missionary,” said Kelly Verdin Kurtz, executive director of institutional advancement at Badin and a member of the Class of 1988.

The athletic logos, including a new lowercase “b” and a new Rams logo, are all custom to Badin High School.

“Our new image…is a unified look that reflects what Badin is all about,” Kurtz said.

The new branding program is part of Badin's strategic plan for the next few years, which was a 12-month process to identify a new mission and vision for the school, and set priorities to achieve that mission and vision.

According to Kurtz, the process to re-brand began about 18 months ago, when the school began conducting research with alumni, students, and parents to see if the existing brand was communicating everything they wanted to communicate. The team then spent six months designing the logos based on the feedback they received.

Kurtz said in the press release that brand consistency was a key component of the plan.

“Now, when you look at Badin’s colors, when you look at the Badin “B,” when you look at a Badin logo, at the Badin Ram, you will be able to identify them as uniquely Badin High School,” she said.

Angie Pieper Gray, director of development and marketing for Badin and a member of the Class of 1983, said that the school’s history of changing color shades, logos, and icons has been confusing for the community. She said the goal over the next few months and years is that when a community member sees someone wearing Badin gear or sees a piece of Badin mail, including brochures or marketing letters, they will instantly recognize it as representing the high school.

“We want to be consistent but compelling,” she said.