Kennesaw State University has received a national award in recognition of its Find Your Wingsbranding initiative that identified KSU’s mission, vision and values, clearly defining what being an Owl means.

Kennesaw State and its partner in the effort, Tailfin Marketing, won a Gold Award for the Find Your Wings campaign in the 36th annual Educational Advertising Awards. Entries from colleges and universities from all 50 states and several foreign countries were judged on creativity, marketing execution and message impact, and KSU was honored for its advertising and branding campaign that included on-campus promotion and events as well as television and radio spots, social media outreach, billboards, and print and digital ads.

Launched at the start of the 2019-20 academic year, Find Your Wings captures the essence of Kennesaw State and outlines how the University is positioning itself in the higher education world presently and for the future. The brand identity’s focus is that, at Kennesaw State, students are exploring and discovering, seeking their own path, their own passions, and their own identity.

“This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication that our team at Kennesaw State and Tailfin put into the Find Your Wings campaign,” said Alice Wheelwright, KSU’s associate vice president for strategic communications and marketing. “Along with increasing awareness of Kennesaw State and conveying what sets us apart from other universities, this initiative affirms that KSU Owls are talented, passionate, determined and unique. Every day we are seeing the results we desired, as the University community – particularly our students – have embraced the Find Your Wings messaging.”

Kennesaw State’s Office of Strategic Communications and Marketing teamed with Tailfin Marketing to refresh KSU’s brand and craft the University’s story. That included reaching out to students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members, and incorporating the feedback given by the more than 6,800 people.

One highly visible element of the campaign is the now recognizable murals on Kennesaw State’s campuses of outstretched Owl wings, offering a fun spot for a photo-op. KSU also adopted the interlocking “KS” mark, previously associated with Kennesaw State Athletics, as the official logo for the University, providing a unified brand presence in the marketplace.

Find Your Wings extended far beyond a logo and photo backdrops, however. The campaign defined five key themes – the University’s “brand pillars” – that became the foundation of everything at Kennesaw State: student-centered success, research with relevance, learning through engagement, future-ready graduates and power of perspectives.

Those themes are reflected in KSU’s mission and vision statements, which state in part: “We help students succeed through exploration, collaboration, and rigor, uniting a diverse spectrum of backgrounds and talents. Authentically diverse, uniquely attainable and endlessly impactful, we will unleash the potential in every student we serve.”

For more about Find Your Wings and Kennesaw State’s mission, vision and values, visit About KSU on the University’s website.