CL South Seeks New Gator in Logo Contest

Crystal Lake South is looking for a new gator.

It has begun phasing out its current gator head logo, due to a licensing rights conflict with the University of Florida, and it’s time for a new gator to take its place.

Community High School District 155 has announced a community-wide gator logo design contest for Crystal Lake South. The new logo will represent South and its students for the next generation. District 155 has opened the contest to its families, staff, students, alumni and general community.

“We’ve already received a handful of submissions,” District 155 Spokesman Jeff Puma said.

The Contest Rules

Entries for the contest must be received by March 1, and should be e-mailed to clsgator@d155.org. No more than three separate entries may be submitted by any one contestant. All entries must be original works of art and can’t be similar or identical in any way to an existing design or copyrighted images.

After e-mailing their designs, contestants must also hand deliver an original, signed copyright/ownership waiver form to Crystal Lake South High School, 1200 S. McHenry Ave., Crystal Lake. Entrants younger than 18 years old must have a parent or guardian’s signature on the ownership waiver.

The rules for the contest are outlined on the Crystal Lake South High School website.

Once the entries have been received, South High School students will vote on the designs and narrow the field of finalists, Puma said. A committee of school administrators will consider the finalists and make its recommendation for a winning design to the District 155 School Board.

The winner will be announced by the end of the school year.

Gator Logo Phase Out

Crystal Lake South High School began phasing out its gator design months after thestating that the logo too closely resembled the gator head originated by the university. South administrators said they received verbal permission six years ago to use the gator head.

However, since that time, more and more high schools throughout Florida and the remainder of the country have begun using a similar logo, and the University of Florida wants to protect it as part of its “strong brand identity.”

Puma said the logo has been removed from the school’s website and other areas where it was easy to remove the design. However, the logo will be phased out on other items, such as school letterhead paper and uniforms, when those items are due for replacement.

“Things like the murals on the wall will come down over time,” Puma said.

Logo designs for the Community High School District 155’s three other schools are not under scrutiny. Puma said former Prairie Ridge High School Principal John Mackie commissioned a local muralist to design the prairie wolf logo for the school.