Arkansas State University - Newport

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Mascot Selection Process

ASU-Newport is searching for a mascot to represent our brand and spirit! Students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members are encouraged to participate in the mascot selection process.

We are looking for a mascot that fits the following criteria:

  • consider the culture and history of both the college and community
  • be easily represented in print, online, and in college materials
  • be accompanied by a name and costume idea for the mascot
  • reflect ASU-Newport's brand personality.

Step 1 Gather ideas for ASU-Newport's future Mascot

Initial Email Sent: March 26, 2018

Survey Availability: March 26-30, 2018

Target Audience: ASU-Newport Faculty, Staff, and Students

Survey Results:

Mascot Name

Physical Character

History or Story

Melvin

Goat

We are the Greatest OF All Time!

White River Monster

Dinosaur-like [that swims]

The White River Monster has been apart of Jackson County and the White River Region for years

River Monsters
 
 

The White River Monster

The size of a boxcar, with a bone protruding from it's head, White River Monster sightings began in 1915 and have persisted over the years.

Conrad

Catfish

Catfish never stop growing, much like our little college and they are also intelligent, just like our faculty, staff, and students.

Maven

Raven

Ravens are popular birds for this area.

Redhead Duck, Aythya americana

Color scheme of the male and ASUN's logo has many similarities.

Duck hunting is prevalent in the area and taps into a conservation motif.

Whitey

White River monsters

A legendary monster that supposedly lives in the white river near Newport that is similar to the legendary Loch Ness monster

ASUN Sundogs - A sun dog (or sundog) or mock sun, formally called a parhelion (plural parhelia) in meteorology, is an atmospheric optical phenomenon that consists of a bright spot to the left and/or right of the Sun. Two sun dogs often flank the Sun within a 22° halo.

A dog mascot that could be beagle, hound, or shepherd with ASUN shirt and maybe cap. I have a presentation with several different looks.

One of the most iconic images in the delta is the farmer and his dog. Dogs are found in every facet of country life. Being a such a large rural area, dogs are not only accessible, affordable, and dependable workers, they transform and enrich our lives by becoming true members of the family.

Bears

 

Oil Trough got its name from the hunters killing bears and making their fat melt and it running into a trough

1.  Bleddyn
 2. Amwolf
 3. Adulf

Wolf Pup   
wolf pup howling

Wolf pups are litter mates.
 
Wolves have been described by some individuals as confident, tolerant, and generous natural leaders, as wild and playful, as supportive and full of affection, as strong but kind, patient, and dignified, as not confident, less tolerant or easy-going, as happy, resilient and stern, and as relaxed, kind, lovable and never harsh.
 
 Intelligent, non-aggressive, and friendly with the ability to make strong emotional attachments are among those traits we can generalize about the magnificent wolf. Individual traits seem as varied and as similar to our own. It is of no wonder that so many people feel such an affinity and connection with this beautiful and complex animal.
 
Most of us have heard by now that the wolf is an extremely intelligent species. Dr. Gordon C. Haber, a noted wolf biologist in Alaska's Denali National Park and Preserve, has said that if you imagine the most unusually intelligent, emotional, and sensitive dog you have ever known, that that's how all wolves are - that extraordinariness is just commonplace among them. It is necessary for their survival.
 
Source: http://www.wolfsongalaska.org/

ASUN Forerunners

Fast roadrunner in some type of work clothes whether industry or business attire. Constantly growing and moving forward. Staying ahead on training and educating.

In researching Newport/ASUN Newport, Jonesboro & Marked Tree, it is know for being ahead in preparing people for industry and education. A Forerunner is a leader. Fast, keeping ahead of progress, technology, and needed knowledge.

ASUN Warbirds

Maybe a fighter jet?

Works with the airbase here in Newport.

ASUN Bombers

A fighter jet?

Works with the history with the Newport airbase

ASUN Delta Aces

 

 

ASU Newport Sun Bears

Is a small black looking bear with a orange pattern near its neck. Sun Bears also have long claws and tongues.

Since our school is small i wanted to do the sun bears because it fits with the weather we have that is sunny and hot. The bears are smaller in height compared to other species of bear. This can be good because were smaller than other schools.

Eagles

The image in my mind is the American Bald Eagle.

When I think of the Eagle, it resembles unity and pride.

Flying Aces

Fighter pilot from ww2

Due to the history of the former air force base during World War Two on the ground the college is currently located on.  Honors the memory of the ace pilots that defended our country.

The ASUN Diamond Miners

A Diamond Miner who carries around a “Diamond” and some sort of a pick or a shovel with a minors hat on and typical miners clothes like coveralls or overalls. Also, It could even have the Arkansas State flag incorporated in some way since it has a Diamond shape in it.

Flag of Arkansas
 
The state flag of Arkansas is red, white, and blue to signify that Arkansas is one of the United States. The large diamond represents the only diamond producing state in the USA - Arkansas.

https://statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-official-item/arkansas/state-flag/flag-arkansas
 

http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2146
 
Diamond Mining
 
Almost 100 million years ago, in what is now Pike County, nature created one of the world’s most unusual diamond-bearing formations, the big volcanic “pipe” that now serves as the centerpiece of Crater of Diamonds State Park. Famous today for recreational mining, the eroded old crater once inspired generations of diamond hunters to dream of commercial success. The history of that long quest—the expectations, the contention, and the repeated frustration—is, in itself, an invaluable legacy of the Arkansas diamond field.
 
Unlike the typical diamond pipe, the formation in Pike County accumulated in various stages as molten rock deep within the earth’s mantle swept up through a shallower zone where diamonds had crystallized long before and then worked its way to the surface. Much of this magma rose slowly in a thick mass, apparently allowing intense heat and pressure to disintegrate (“resorb”) the crystals conveyed. Later, in sharp contrast, another part was caught up in at least one violent, gaseous eruption that fragmented the rock and cooled it enough to let diamonds survive. In the end, three distinct forms of the original magma spread across at least eighty acres at the surface. The diamond-bearing section dominated the east half of the structure.
 
Although the formation was recorded decades earlier, the search for diamonds began in 1888 when State Geologist John C. Branner and chemist Richard N. Brackett conducted a thorough survey and classified the rock as “peridotite”—an olivine material similar to the “blue ground” of the rich diamond-bearing pipes found recently in South Africa (later known as “kimberlite”). Because of baseless mining “excitements” at the time, Branner’s report refrained from mentioning the many fruitless hours he spent on hands and knees “looking for diamonds in the gullies and over the surfaces of the decomposed rocks.”
 
Successful hunting would have made Branner the first person outside of South Africa to discover diamonds at their original source. Instead, it was John Wesley Huddleston who accidentally saw the first crystals in the summer of 1906, on the surface of his farm near Murfreesboro (Pike County). That 243-acre tract, purchased in July 1905, included over three-fourths of the volcanic formation.
 
Beginning in September, an alert group of Little Rock (Pulaski County) businessmen led by Samuel W. (Sam) Reyburn, a leading banker-lawyer, obtained options on Huddleston’s land and most adjacent properties, securing control of all the formation except six acres at the northeast corner. Following Huddleston’s lead, the new venture began at the base of a big slope on the southeast side of the formation and soon found an extraordinary number of diamonds at the surface. Erosion had concentrated these within a layer of rocky, humus-enriched “black gumbo” averaging about one foot thick and extending at places to four feet. They usually turned up after vegetation was cleared but also could be screened from the topsoil with even the most primitive equipment.
 
In following tests, the black surface layer proved consistently diamond-rich. The highest recorded average yield ran slightly over thirty-six carats per 100 loads (the standard 1,600-pound tram load). Although exceptional, the yield would have run considerably higher if the equipment of that time had retained very small diamonds instead of letting them pass back onto the field. Further losses occurred unintentionally because of the tough clay gumbo.
 
Field workers finally dealt with the black gumbo by adopting a technique applied in Western gold fields—using high-pressure water hoses to break down the soil and flush material through sluice boxes, where heavy minerals were collected for regular processing. Between 1914 and December 1932, sluicing crews usually involving Lee J. Wagner of Murfreesboro stripped the surface layer from over fifty

ASU-Newport Aviators

Guy and girl in the old style helmet and glasses

Acknowledges ASU-Newport's history as being an airforce base

ASU-Newport Zebras

Zebra

We have pride and our stripes are unique. We are passionate in serving students.

 

Step 2: Narrowing it Down

We received lots of great submissions during Step 1! To move closer to a mascot, in Step 2 we sent a list to the ASU-Newport campus community asking for input on narrowing down the initial submissions.

DETAILS

Initial Email Sent: April 4, 2018

Survey Availability: April 4-10, 2018

Target Audience: ASU-Newport Faculty, Staff, and Students

 

Step 3: Getting Closer

Based on a thorough discussion and with the aid of the informal poll, we narrowed down the list mascot suggestions to the list below:

Flying Aces

Bleddyn

ASU-Newport Sundogs

White River Monster

ASU-Newport Sunbears

ASU-Newport Aviators

Step 4 Design of ASU-Newport's Future Mascot

The Director of Marketing and Communications will guide the creation and design of ASU-Newport's future mascot. Updates will be communicated to the ASU-Newport campus community when they are available

 

Step 5 Reveal ASU-Newport's Mascot

The reveal of ASU-Newport's mascot will occur in August 2018.