I distinctly remember when I first heard about Geneva College. In 2008, a mentor vouched for the transformative power of Geneva’s higher education program. He planted a seed that eventually produced fruit.

I graduated from Geneva’s MA in higher education program in 2014 and, while studying, learned about the strengths of a Geneva education. At Geneva, we are good at personal connections. One of our strengths is that if you are part of the Geneva community, you are known.

As good as we are at inviting those we know into our community, there is still work to do to reach those who don’t have a personal connection to Geneva. This presents a golden opportunity for Geneva to invite many prospective students into our ministry of education through a consistent brand that symbolizes what Geneva has to offer. By brand we mean the system of messages and visual identifiers by which a person, including a stranger to Geneva, might quickly associate our college with important concepts about it, including our biblical foundation. Even more simply, our brand is the story we tell about Geneva that creates expectations and makes the college memorable. Those who will be best served by a Geneva education will then have the awareness needed to visit campus, meet with faculty and students, and make the personal connections we are so good at making.

In December 2021, Geneva began to develop a new brand that builds on our almost 175-year legacy of offering high-quality and Christ-centered education. The new brand needed to translate our rich history and excellent programs into language and visuals that prospective students in the 21st Century expect.

The new brand had to:

Represent the unique mission of Geneva College: “Geneva College is a Christ-centered academic community that provides a comprehensive education to equip students for faithful and fruitful service to God and neighbor”;

Introduce a new logo and brand architecture for everyday use;

Provide us with a clear brand promise that could drive our messaging;

Preserve the institutional seal to be used for official functions of the college.

On July 11, we publicly launched our new brand. It positions us to tell our story to those who are not familiar with Geneva. It is a brand that communicates clearly that our mission of “Pro Christo et Patria” is as relevant today as it was in 1848. This brand will equip us to position Geneva College as a leader on faith-and-life integration in our culture for years to come.

The brand makes the strength and quality of the Geneva experience clear for prospective students, parents, friends, and donors. It invites people into fuller, more personal engagement with Geneva College. Our brand offers initial coordinates to guide people through the journey of getting to know the college at greater depth.

What Do We Say about Ourselves?

One of the greatest challenges throughout this process was to summarize the hundreds of incredible stories about Geneva into a concise brand promise. In other words, what does Geneva do in such an excellent way that it sets us apart as a unique institution of higher learning?

After hours of meetings, wordsmithing, and consideration, we created a new brand promise for Geneva:

“Through purposeful learning in a community reflecting the full spectrum of God’s kingdom, a Geneva College experience inspires students to discover a faith-life calling in service to God and neighbor.”

While the elements that make up our brand promise are not unique to Geneva, the combination of these elements makes a distinctive brand promise specific to Geneva. In other words, Geneva does this best. Our brand promise positions us to tell the same story in unique ways in every imaginable place and context. Practically speaking, a prospective student will encounter the same brand promise any place they encounter Geneva. Our videos, web ads, campus tours, college fairs, emails, viewbooks, printed ads, and any medium through which an outsider encounters the Geneva brand will be singing the same tune.

Geneva’s Rally Cry

Geneva students understand they’re created for a purpose. To bear God’s image. To boldly follow His call in service to others. To live their faith fully and intentionally.

We’re on a journey of discovery here, and you’ll be part of that journey, too. Integrating faith and learning. Thinking constructively and creatively.

We seek God’s design in all things and welcome one another wholeheartedly. Together we are inspired to learn, grow, and discern all that we are created to be and do. And to discover the compelling significance of God’s calling.

You were made for this.

The rally cry has roots in several scriptural ideas, most notably:

Psalm 139:14: “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.”

Isaiah 43:7: “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

1 Peter 2:9: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

As we developed this idea, one faculty member even remarked that this idea is carried heavily in the words that Mordecai spoke to Esther when he said, “And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14).

Creating a Recognizable Visual Identity

The concept of Geneva’s logo is simple. Geneva has a distinct and valuable mission represented by the crown and Bible. We recognize that everything we do is under the kingship of Christ and the authority of His Word. Our mission is to equip students for faithful and fruitful service to God and neighbor.

Since its founding, Geneva has been a mission station for the Reformed Presbyterian Church and the work of the kingdom. When the college relocated to Beaver Falls, Pa., in 1880, it did so with the intent of ministering to the region from that strategic location. The “valley” at the top of the logo as well as the three waterfalls representing the original Upper, Middle, and Lower Falls in Beaver Falls remind us that we are called to serve God and neighbor in the place we are. It recalls the words from Jeremiah 29 where we are reminded that Israelites were called “to build houses, plant gardens, and seek the prosperity of the city.” They were called to be faithful and fruitful neighbors, even as they were exiled from their own home.

Geneva’s new logo should challenge us to build our lives on the cornerstone that is Jesus Christ wherever we may be called to serve.

The new logo will be Geneva’s primary logo. You will see it on campus, on our business cards and envelopes, and in our marketing efforts. Establishing a new primary logo allows us to elevate the seal and to use it in places that call for institutional and academic significance, places like diplomas or an offer of admission to the college.

Geneva has been doing good and faithful work for almost 175 years. Establishing our brand identity the year before we celebrate this significant milestone will position us to start the next 175 years in a way that honors our heritage and allows us to continue to faithfully live out our mission. While honoring the past, our new brand helps us invite more people into the amazing mission of Geneva and invite more students and families who are currently unfamiliar with Geneva into the kingdom community we strive to represent.