Increasingly on campuses across the nation, two of the most important buzzwords tossed about in high-level meetings are about in high-level meetings are “branding and positioning.” Institutions of higher learning are looking within themselves to identify the values-indeed, the essence-that epitomizes the campus and the education received by every student.

Juniata is no different from its peers in this effort. The College has been diligently working for nearly two years toward creating not only the obvious marketing tools-a new logo, a rediscovery of a new marketing catchphrase- but also identifying the core values that make Juniata a unique educational proposition.

“The elements that make Juniata an exceptional place to learn are not necessarily easy to boil down to a few words,” says Michelle Corby '95, assistant vice president of marketing. “We believe by identifying five powerful ideas that really describe the Juniata experience, we can weave those values into our advertising, our publications, our Internet presence, and our media contacts.”

Working in tandem with the College's 18-person marketing committee (comprised of one alumnus, one trustee, nine administrators, three faculty, two students, vice president for advancement John Hille, and the College's marketing department), Corby identified the five essential qualities infused in all things Juniata.

o Momentum: Focuses on how the College is changing and how students build up to successful careers as alumni.

o Flexibility: Illustrates Juniata's hands-on, experiential philosophy where students through the Program of Emphasis (POE) take an active part in controlling their destiny.

o Environment: The College and its alumni and students appreciate and are responsible for a safe and beautiful setting for learning and living, and the broader responsibility for the Earth's resources.

o Experience: Students and faculty are always elbow-deep in real-world projects, taking the initiative in their education and in campus and community affairs.

o Community: Students here are supported by Juniata faculty and staff and through the support of each other, the College, and community, create a powerful feeling of being at home that continues to resonate with alumni.

“I think it is really great that Juniata is developing a marketing plan, because it will help Juniata appeal to more students and parents coming from different places and situations,” says Athena Gibble '06, a junior studying Spanish/Hispanic cultures and social work and a member of the marketing committee. “Our marketing plan captures very well the Juniata experience, because it incorporates the core of each individual experience from many different groups of people in the Juniata community.”

Juniata's marketing tagline, Think, Evolve, Act was easy to conceive - Juniata's enrollment department had been using the concept in mailings for years. However, the process of conception took a bit longer. After considering many options, the marketing committee kept returning to those familiar three words, and it became clear; why argue with success? In informal interviews and focus groups, students, faculty and counselors reported how effectively this simple mantra communicated not only the elegant design of a Juniata education, but also the formative journey our students take to a chosen calling.

“Think Evolve Act suggests to those who see it in print or on television that there is an educational development for our students as they move from the intellectual activity of thinking to the social and emotional process of personal growth that allows them to translate and integrate knowledge into action once they leave Juniata,” says Nancy Siegel, assistant professor of art history and a member of the marketing committee. “Those three words say it all.”