By: Ariel Ludwick 

     Over the past few months, a team of Eisenhower students have gathered their ideas and art supplies to come together with Youngsville students to create new logos and designs for the upcoming school year. However, many questions have sprouted due to these meetings.  

     The most recent meeting occurred on April 16 at Eisenhower. Brigit Cook, a current Eisenhower junior, was interviewed regarding the new logo designs, as she has attended all four meetings. Many students at both schools have had concerns about these meetings, wondering what they mean for the upcoming school year.  

     When asked what the purpose of these meetings was, Cook explained, “The point of creating these logos is to embody the combined school spirit that we hope to emphasize in this coming school year, where Youngsville will be assimilated into Eisenhower. They are not only a physical representation of both of the schools’ students and personal pride, but a metaphorical expression of the acceptance that the students share.”  

     But why have there been numerous meetings over the past few months? “The process was simple but took a lot of work. We began with sketches that outlined our visions for logos that capture the visuals of both schools, while also providing a distinct and creative design. We took a democratic approach and decided the best way to narrow designs down was to vote, so, for each round of sketches, we would vote, and then finalize, and then repeat the process. Finally, we planned to digitalize and complete our selected design,” Cook answered. 

     While these logos won’t change mascots, they will still have an impact. “Our primary focus was taking concepts and combining them, some of the concepts from the Eisenhower side included typical knight symbolism, such as shields and swords, and the iconic knight helmet. For Youngsville, we used wings, talons, feathers, and an eagle eye,” Cook explained.  

     Cook went on to explain how the logo could have a positive impact, “The hope of these logos is that they will create a positive influence, representing that Youngsville is not having their identity erased and neither is Eisenhower, but rather that they are coalescing into something more that takes the core elements from both.” Cook continued, “Ideally, this will improve student friendships and create a positive environment for the upcoming school year, while also showing the community that the students are capable of handling such a difficult time with pride and consideration for each other.” 

     The work put into these logos has been conducted by Eisenhower art teacher, Mrs. McElhaney, and Youngsville art teacher, Mrs. Walters. “We have enjoyed being part of the creative process with this group of art students,” McElhaney and Walters said. “They have worked hard developing various ideas, sketches, variations, and creating colored digital versions of the logos. We look forward to seeing the finished results delivered to the student body from Youngsville and Eisenhower, as well as both communities.” 

     QR codes will be hanging up on sheets of paper around Youngsville and Eisenhower schools, so you can vote for which design is your favorite.