Jordan Johnson
Contributing Writer
Newcomers to the North Central College campus can be seen walking up and down Brainard Street every day. From trekking up the hill in front of Res/Rec to traveling all throughout Old Main, they observe and breathe in all the sights NCC has to offer.
And as a school deeply engrained with tradition, the sights offered are plentiful.
Cardinal red is painted with pride across campus, sweeping into and out of buildings. NCC logos can be seen on the walls, gym floors, students’ t-shirts, and more. Banner after banner line the streets surrounding the campus, displaying both past and present students, the very heart and soul of North Central College.
NCC’s most recent addition to its consistent décor is several poster decals coated onto the walls of the men’s cross country and track and field locker room that feature the accomplishments of the program.
Mary Dettman, associate director of marketing and graphic designer in North Central’s Office of Marketing and Communications, is overseeing the project, while student graphic designer Elizabeth Composto, ’15, takes on full designing responsibilities.
“The idea came from the want and the need to tell the cross country and track and field story,” Dettman says. “With Al [Carius] and Grammie [Frank Gramarosso], it’s a really rich history and tradition in winning, being one of our most successful sports on campus.”
As one of the most central spots for a team to meet and gather, Dettman explains the importance of placing the decals in the locker room as both beneficial to the men’s cross-country and track and field program, as well as the college.
Dettman also highlights the recruiting aspect, noting that these poster decals also give prospective NCC athletes the opportunity to visually understand the program’s achievements, and additionally, add to their attraction of North Central College as their chosen school.
“For the design, Mary and I talked about the aspects of the team that are noticeable,” Composto explains. “We discussed incorporating the recognizable candy stripes somehow into the design. Including a photo of cross runners in their red hats was also a start for my design process.”
Several drafts went into creating the first decal, located in the far left section of lockers. The largest portion of the design features the group of athletes toting the familiar red NCC winter hat. The Al Carius quote and program motto, “Run for fun and personal bests,” reads above the photo.
Composto adds, “That first wall became the basis for the entire locker room design.”
Since the production of the project in Fall Term of 2013, Composto has thus completed two of the decal designs, which are currently displayed in the locker room. The second poster decal is seen immediately upon entry, and expresses the national success of the program with a collage of men’s cross-country and track and field images, as well as a list of team accomplishments at the top.
As a member of the program, Dionte Hackler, ’14, is among the many men’s cross-country and track and field athletes who have taken notice to the inspiring decals.
“It makes you realize that the school really does support what you do as an athlete,” Hackler says.
As for future plans, Dettman notes that the men’s cross-country and track and field locker room is not quite complete yet.
“There are still some other ideas in the works as to how do we represent the individual national champions,” Dettman explains, “and to keep up with representing future national champions as well.
Dettman also mentions a decal display for the women’s track and field program is currently in progress, once again featuring Composto as the project’s designer, as well as starting plans to work with coaches of more NCC sports in order to provide some sort of design to represent their team.
