The Bloomsburg Huskies are the athletic teams of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, a public university in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. The university’s official colors are maroon and gold, and its mascot is the Husky, known by the name Roongo.[1][2]
Design and History
The Huskies nickname dates to October 9, 1933, when the student body of then Bloomsburg State Teachers College voted nearly unanimously to adopt the husky as the school’s first official mascot. The proposal came from art professor and husky trainer George J. Keller, who donated an actual husky that made its first appearance at a pep rally on October 13. The dog was named Roongo, a combination of the school’s maroon and gold colors.[1]
Five live dogs served as official mascot from 1933 until 1958, three of them named Roongo. After the university decided the cost of keeping a live dog was too great, a costume was designed in 1979 for a student to portray the husky. Five costumes have been used since then, with the latest debuting in 2005. The costumed mascot, originally known only as the husky, now again goes by the historic name Roongo.[1]
Bloomsburg University owns and controls the use of its names and marks, including “Bloomsburg Huskies” and “Bloomsburg University Huskies,” through federally registered trademarks. The term “Roongo” and its likeness are also trademarked items.[3]
A trademark application filed by Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, as successor to Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, describes a mark consisting of stylized letters B and U with the image of the head of a husky in between the two letters.[4]
Meaning and Symbolism
The husky was proposed by art professor George J. Keller as the ideal mascot because of the dog’s noble qualities.[1] The mascot’s name, Roongo, combines the school’s colors of maroon and gold.[1]
The school colors have been maroon and gold since the 1920s, having originally been “lemon and garnet.”[5]
Typography and Design
In 2017, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference unveiled a new logo and branding initiative developed in partnership with the design firm Joe Bosack & Co. The conference marks were created in each member school’s own colors, allowing institutions to embrace a relationship with the PSAC. The process included focus groups and surveys of campus constituents, including presidents, sports information directors and athletics administrators.[6]
Logo Index is an independent educational archive covering logos, visual identities and graphic design history. All trademarks and brand assets remain the property of their respective owners.
