Style Guide
The image and identity of St. Charles Community College - both words and symbols, come together in the institutional brand. This brand toolkit and style guide provides the elements needed to communicate SCC's brand correctly and consistently. From the college name and logo to written words and style, the most common elements of SCC's brand are included in this guide.
The Official Logotype
The official family of logos are trademarks of St. Charles Community College and have been carefully designed to represent the institution. The official logo consists of the words "St. Charles Community College," plus triangle artwork. The triangles reflect elements of unique campus building architecture and are a heritage nod to SCC's previous logo that represented the five original county school districts that established the college district. The logo reflects the flexibility and mobility of the college while forming an abstract "S." Its white band communicates motion and is inspired by the Missouri River. The official logo is the only logo that represents the college. The name as depicted is part of the official logo and must not be altered. Nor should the official logo triangles be separated from the college name.The official college acronym is SCC. The "S" stands for "St. Charles"; and the two "Cs" stand for "Community College."
The official word mark of the college is designed not as a substitute for the official logo but as a supplement. It is permissible to use when the official logo will not fit within specifications of a project such as promotional items like writing pens.
The official seal is limited to diplomas and other items for Commencement as well as employee service awards and other certificates issued by departments and divisions of the college. Because special permission is required for its use, it is not available for download online. Questions about the use of the official seal should be directed to the Marketing and Communications Department.
SCC departments and divisions should use the official logo for means of communication. Individual department/division logos are not permitted. A minor modification that includes a department name may be permissible. Contact the Marketing and Communications Department for more information. Example:
Student clubs and organizations are permitted to have their own logo. Logos must be designed by the Marketing and Communications Department.
Understanding the difference between the official logo and a graphic:
- Graphics are created and used to supplement the official logo identity creating a brand within a brand.
- Example: The cougar paw print is used in SCC materials as a supplemental design graphic but never replaces the official logo.
- Social media graphics or avatars are identifiers found on sites such as Facebook or Twitter. These are not logos but graphics.
SCC's official logos are clear identifiers, not mere artwork to be manipulated or tweaked to fit a particular application or document. The colors, sizes, proportions and overall design used to create each official logo have been carefully selected for aesthetic and practical purposes. Each official logo has been created for a wide variety of applications - it should originate from one of the approved graphics available in various formats for MAC, PC and the Web.
When using any approved version of the official logo, it is important that the area surrounding the official logo remain free of clutter - it should not have to compete with other types of imagery. To ensure this, approved versions of the logo must never appear closer than the height of the capital letter "M;" as it is found in the word "COMMUNITY;" to the edge of the paper or to any other typography or artwork.
To emphasize the importance of the SCC website, it is always appropriate, but not mandatory, to include the college's Web address immediately below the official logo.
When reproducing logos, it is best to select the exact size needed rather than trying to enlarge or reduce them to fit. For use in print, the minimum acceptable sizes for each version are shown here.
At no time is any approved version of the official logo to be used with any other logo or symbolic device of the college or any other entity on the same page or surface, unless prior permission is given for individually determined cases.
Unauthorized graphics, icons or words should never be used in conjunction with the official logos.
Use the official logo artwork as-is.
- Do not overprint the official logo onto text.
- Do not use unapproved colors.
- Do not break the official logo and use the triangles as a substitute. The triangles can be considered a graphic element with approval through the Marketing and Communications Department.
- Do not stretch or condense the official logos (keep proportions the same).
- Do not use the official logos on an angle.
To ensure quality and consistency, use only official electronic versions of each official logo. The only acceptable color combination is maroon (PMS 195c) and gray (PMS 430c).
It is permissible to print the official logo entirely in one-color ink, preferably black. When using one color, the official logo is to be printed as a solid color. Do not screen (print ink as a percentage of solid) any portion of the official logo.
There may be occasions when a reverse-form official logo is necessary. Reverse official logos are permissible, when used properly. If an approved version of the official logo is to be used in reverse form against a dark background, use the official artwork for reverse reproduction.
The color wheel demonstrates primary and secondary color combinations. The two tiers cannot be interchanged. The primary colors are maroon (PMS 195c) and gray (PMS 430c).
When used with the official logo and fonts, SCC's color palette supports a consistent and cohesive graphic identity.
The official typefaces of SCC used by the Marketing and Communications Department are TT Hazelnuts and Averta. These font families can be purchased and downloaded through the Adobe website.
The official SCC stationery system (letterhead, envelope and business card) is designed to give prominence to the official logo and college name.
Business Cards
Business card orders can be placed by completing the Business Card Request form.
Name Badges
Name badges can be ordered by completing the Name Badge Request.
Any original content is fine. If you create a graphic from scratch, write text from your own imagination, or create an original audio or video recording, you can put these on your Web page without worrying about copyright. However, you may want to ensure copyright protection on your original material.
Any work in the "public domain" is not protected by copyright. The trick is knowing what is in the public domain.
- The copyright has expired (author's death plus 50 years).
- The original holder of the copyright has given up the copyright.
- The federal government created the work.
Remember that these are not hard and fast rules. If you are in doubt as to whether material is in the public domain, ask for permission to use the material.
In the educational community the law is more lenient in regards to the Fair Use exception to copyright protection. The basic guidelines for fair use are:
- The use of the material is not for commercial reasons.
- Copying factual material is usually more permissible than copying creative works.
- The amount copied cannot be a substantial portion of the work as a whole.
- It cannot be used if using the material will have an adverse impact on the market value of the work.
Again, there is a large gray area in the fair use doctrine. If you're not sure, ask permission.
There is certain information that is not copyrightable. Facts, words, phrases or titles cannot be copyrighted. This would be the case with a link on a page. The link by itself is not protected by copyright (just like an address of a person). But, if someone compiled a page of links in an organized and meaningful way, then it could be protected by copyright (like a directory of law firms in the Midwest).
You can always have links to websites. The only time there could be a problem with having a link on your page is if you imply a relationship with or an endorsement of the site you are linking to (this is really only if there is some kind of commercial aspect involved).
The selection of information on a page, coordination and arrangement of a Web page are protected by copyright in the same way the content of the page is protected. The same guidelines stated above apply to the design in the form of the HTML code. In order to use the HTML code from a page you admire, you must save the source code to a disk or to your hard drive. The act of copying the code can put you in violation of copyright unless you can prove fair use. The best guideline for using HTML source code from other Web pages is not to copy large portions of the design or very original use of HTML code.
For more information, consult "Online Law," Thomas J. Smedinghoff , Editor, in the SCC Library in the Reference area, REF KF 390.5 .C6 O55 1996.
Scooter McCougar made his debut at St. Charles Community College in 2007 and has been a familiar face at the college ever since.
From the time he was a cub, Scooter dreamt of a career as a college mascot. After his first visit to SCC, he knew there was no better place for his mascot aptitudes.
Scooter has a variety of responsibilities at SCC, but his number one goal is to spread Cougar Pride. He entertains crowds of students, faculty and community members at college events such as Fall Fun Blitz, Spring Fling, Rhythm and Ribs and That '80s Run.
Over the years, Scooter has met so many people at SCC. He stays connected with his friends through Facebook. Friend Scooter McCougar at facebook.com/stcharlescc.
When he’s not attending an SCC event or checking Facebook, Scooter is an average Cougar. He enjoys hunting, eating and taking catnaps.
Book Scooter
Interested in scheduling Scooter McCougar for an event?
Contact SCC Marketing at Mac@stchas.edu.
SCC’s written style is based on the Associated Press Stylebook. Included below are the most commonly used words and phrases, SCC-specific terminology and SCC exceptions to AP Style.
Written Style Guide
Tagline – Be Extraordinary. Be SCC.
Positioning statement – St. Charles Community College is a smart path to success. We connect students to universities, graduates to meaningful careers and area residents to cultural experiences and lifelong learning. The work we do and the services we provide fuel the local workforce and foster economic stability.
Keywords, pillars & marketing messages –
Flexible and Convenient – Versatile course offerings and adaptable scheduling prepare our students for success from day one. We are centrally located and easily accessible with an ever-increasing variety of alternative learning options that minimize barriers, meeting our students wherever they are in life.
- Welcome to learning your way.
- You don’t have to go far to go far.
Engaging and Enriching – We are confident in our ability to empower students with challenging, individualized opportunities to create the best educational experience possible and develop strong, passionate contributors throughout the region.
- Welcome to education that works.
- You’ll be challenged, and you’ll love it.
Supportive and Student-centric – We welcome all students no matter their educational goals. They are our No.-1 priority, and we demonstrate firm commitment to them through our caring and devoted faculty and staff and an evolving cache of learning resources.
- Welcome to teachers who know you.
- You’re not just a number – you’re number one.
Photo subjects should be in focus and free of clutter. Subjects should be somewhat distant from their background to create a soft/out-of-focus background feel. This is the photograph’s depth of field.
Subjects should be positioned to either the left or right side of the frame and are shown from the waist up or closer. Do not flip the image horizontally in layout. Only in extreme circumstances is this permitted.
Print Reproduction - Images need to be 300 dpi (dots per inch) and set to the CMYK color profile. JPEG or TIFF are the best file formats supported for print reproduction.
Web - A computer monitor is set to display at 72 dpi. Images can be saved in three different formats – JPEG, GIF and PNG. The format you use may affect the quality of the image. The JPEG format is best used when there is a lot of color in a picture and storing a photograph. The GIF or PNG formats are best used when there are few colors in a picture, if transparency is desired or when storing line drawings, text and/or graphics. Web image files work only when set to the RGB color profile.
Permission must be obtained from student models who appear in photographs intended for marketing and advertising purposes. Download the Model Release Form and have the model complete and return it to you before taking the photo(s).
While no cost is associated with sharing SCC photographs, they cannot be released to the public until they have met their primary purpose (i.e. printed materials, Facebook, website, etc.).
Contact the Marketing and Communications Department at mac@stchas.edu for more information.
SCC video is similar to SCC photography. Photo subjects should be in focus and free of clutter. Principal subjects should be somewhat distant from the background to create a soft/out-of-focus background feel. This is the video’s depth of field.
Subjects should be positioned to either the left or right side of the frame and are shown from the waist up or closer.
Model Release
Permission must be obtained from student models who appear in videos intended for
marketing and advertising purposes. Download and have the model complete the Model
Release Form prior to filming.
Services
Contact the Marketing and Communications Department at mac@stchas.edu for more information.