By Maureen Cowhey ’19
Editor-in-Chief
One of my goals when I took over as Editor-in-Chief of The Scripps Voice almost three years ago was to redesign our outdated logo—a new logo for a new era. Since then, other day-to-day tasks have taken priority in trying to reform and run a student newspaper while working as a full-time student. However, as I wrap up my final semester at Scripps and subsequently my final issue of the Scripps Voice, I am excited to share with everyone our new logo design.
Our previous logo featured Scripps’ Honnold Gate, a fitting symbol for welcoming me into the role of Editor-in-Chief. As I took over my position in my sophomore year, it felt like metaphorically walking through the gate into a new life: incipit vita nova. But so much has changed since then. We have a new staff, a new motto, a new mission statement, a new website, a new social media presence, and truly the only thing that has remained constant is our name. Thus, it felt necessary to give us a new look to define our new era.
The new symbol of The Scripps Voice is an olive branch laurel wreath alongside roman lettering. The olive branch not only draws on the famous Scripps olive trees that shade our campus, but also the laurel wreath is the symbol of the humanities and great writers. We wanted to draw on this symbol of triumph and success in rhetoric while also incorporating an iconic part of the Scripps campus.
The olive branch laurel is a reminder of Scripps students’ commitment to activism. The very olive trees that are still standing on campus are only present because of Scripps students coming together to protect them during the construction of the Edwards Humanities Building. As The Scripps Voice forges forward into a new era of radical voices, creative perspectives, and uncompromising activism, we want to ensure that the Voice remains a place where students have the freedom to be unapologetically committed to inclusivity and justice.
The logo was designed by Scripps’ own Cindy Zhu ’19, who is majoring in Art and minoring in German studies. Ever since high school, she has been interested in designing posters and logos for various student organizations and events. It was important for us that The Scripps Voice’s logo and other promotional material would be designed by a Scripps artist.
As I pass along my position as EiC to the next group of student leaders, this logo feels like a promise for a radical and inclusive legacy for The Scripps Voice: one that was established when the paper was founded on in 1991, and one that I know will continue long after I have left Scripps.
