We Are Cleveland State University!

CSU launches new brand initiative and logo

Contact: Dave Kielmeyer, 216-523-7284

CLEVELAND (January 19, 2023) Cleveland State University has launched a new brand identity and logo to better shape and convey its story to the world. 

The launch follows two years of progress implementing CSU 2.0 – the University’s ambitious vision for the future – that includes new strategies to drive enrollment, enhance the student experience, strengthen engagement with alumni and to drive economic development in Northeast Ohio.

“Great brands tell a story and we have a powerful story to tell,” said CSU President Laura Bloomberg. “It’s a story about inspiring and innovative students, faculty, staff and alumni. It’s a story about determination, success, and the lives and communities we transform. It’s a story about Cleveland and our place in it. It’s a story about us, ‘Because we are Cleveland State University.’”

Which led the University to the brand tagline “We are Cleveland State University.”

According to Roy Gifford, vice president and chief marketing and communications officer, the brand identity unifies the University’s comprehensive brand strategy with recruitment, communications materials, storytelling and a new institutional logo that conveys CSU’s role as a modern, urban beacon institution.

“As CSU grows into the vision of CSU 2.0, we want to tell the proud story of CSU in a way that resonates with potential students and their families. We want to paint a picture that captures the CSU experience, spirit, emotion and energy,” he said. “This gives us a flexible campaign platform to do that through on-demand story telling.”

For insight and inspiration, Gifford said the University turned to its community — CSU students, alumni, employees, scholars and community partners — to tell the University what they see in CSU.

“We learned what people truly value in our mission,” Gifford said. “We heard stories of tenacity, empowerment and persistence. Combine that with access to a world-class education, hands-on learning tailored for the jobs of tomorrow, cutting edge research, top Division I sports, and the support of a caring community, and you will uplift generations of families. That’s what we do at CSU.”

The University’s new institutional logo features the University’s iconic Rhodes Tower set against the Cleveland skyline.

“We’re proud to be a public, urban university,” Bloomberg said. “Our location in downtown Cleveland is one of our greatest assets. We are an economic, urban and civic engagement engine for the region. Our new logo emphasizes this critical and core part of our identity.”

To learn more about CSU’s branding initiative visit CSUOhio.edu.

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About Cleveland State University

Founded in 1964, Cleveland State University is a public research institution that provides a dynamic setting for Engaged Learning. With nearly 16,000 students, eight colleges and more than 175 academic programs, CSU was again chosen for 2022 as one of America’s best universities by U.S. News & World Report, including the #1 university in Ohio for social mobility. Find more information at www.CSUOhio.edu.