Client
Willis Jepson Middle School
Location
Vacaville, California (Vacaville Unified School District)
The Challenge
The Problem: Willis Jepson Middle School, part of Vacaville Unified School District (serving 12,500 students across 17 schools in Northern California), had been using a generic jaguar clip-art mascot for over a decade. The outdated identity created multiple problems:
- The mascot wasn’t original—it was shared by 3 other schools in the region
- No official brand guidelines meant every teacher/coach created their own versions
- Spirit wear was non-existent because local vendors had no official artwork
- Athletic teams were using random jaguar images from Google
- Students showed low school pride—only 12% owned school-branded items
The district recognized that middle school is critical for building school identity and pride. Without a professional brand, Jepson was losing students’ emotional connection during these formative years.
The Impact: Low engagement, minimal merchandise revenue, and a visual identity that communicated “we don’t take ourselves seriously” to prospective families.
Our Task
Develop a complete Jaguars brand identity system that would:
- Create an ORIGINAL jaguar mascot owned exclusively by Jepson
- Appeal to middle schoolers (grades 6-8)—fierce but not intimidating
- Work across athletics, academics, and school-wide events
- Include ALL necessary brand assets (logos, patterns, colors, numerals, signage)
- Provide vendor-ready specifications for immediate production
- Unify all sports teams under one cohesive visual language
The system needed to feel energetic and youthful while maintaining professional quality appropriate for district approval.
Our Action Plan
Research & Strategy (Weeks 1-3):
- Surveyed 340 students (grades 6-8) about desired mascot style
- Interviewed 12 teachers, 8 coaches, and district marketing staff
- Analyzed 8 competing middle schools in Solano County
- Reviewed Vacaville USD brand architecture and district color guidelines
Key Insights:
- Students wanted a “cool, aggressive jaguar”—not cute or cartoonish
- Teachers needed simple brand assets they could use for everyday materials
- Coaches required sport-specific applications
- District wanted a system that could scale to all school touchpoints
- Black/gold palette tested strongest (Championship Gold + Jaguar Black)
Design Development (Weeks 4-10): Created comprehensive Jaguars identity featuring:
- Primary crest: Roaring jaguar with “WILLIS JEPSON JAGUARS” wordmark
- Mascot head: Standalone jaguar for patches/helmets
- Letter mark “J”: Textured with jaguar spots for caps/sleeves
- Claw-mark pattern: Official school pattern for jerseys/banners
- Custom numerals & letters: Athletic number sets
- Championship Gold & Jaguar Black: Bold, high-contrast palette
Developed 7 mascot concepts; the roaring jaguar won 82% student approval.
System Architecture (Weeks 11-16): Comprehensive brand system including:
- Primary logo + 11 variations (horizontal, stacked, one-color, reversed)
- Secondary marks (jaguar head, “J” lettermark, wordmark-only)
- Complete color system (Pantone, CMYK, RGB, HEX)
- Custom athletic numerals and nameplate specifications
- Official claw-mark pattern system
- Sport-specific lockups (football, basketball, volleyball, track)
- Social media template kit
- Signage and wayfinding specifications
- Event materials (table throws, backdrops)
- 58-page brand guidelines with usage rules
Deliverables:
- Final vector source files (AI, EPS, SVG)
- Complete brand style guide
- Embroidery-ready files with stitch counts
- Screen-print separations
- Social media kit
- Presentation deck for district board approval
Measurable Results
Immediate Impact:
- District Board unanimous approval on first presentation
- Spirit wear launch: $31,000 in sales first 90 days (vs. $2,800 entire previous year)
- Student ownership: 67% of students now own Jaguars-branded gear (up from 12%)
- Social media reveal: 45,000+ impressions across district channels
Long-Term Growth:
- Spirit wear revenue increased 950% in Year 1
- Athletic team unity: All 6 sports programs now use cohesive branding (previously each had different designs)
- School pride: Student survey showed 78% “feel proud to be a Jaguar” (up from 34% pre-rebrand)
- Community engagement: Local businesses began sponsoring teams, citing “professional appearance”
Board Room Metrics:
- Reduced design costs by 65%—unified templates eliminated need for custom designs
- 3 local vendors now licensed to produce official merchandise (new revenue stream: $8,200/year)
- Environmental graphics implementation cost $12,000 less than estimated due to efficient vendor specifications
- District marketing department cited Jepson rebrand as model for future school projects
District-Wide Impact: The success of the Jepson rebrand led Vacaville USD to implement similar comprehensive branding projects at 4 other district schools—validating the system’s effectiveness and scalability.
The transformation proved that middle school branding is not just about aesthetics—it’s about building pride, unity, and school culture during critical developmental years. The Jaguars identity became a symbol students WANT to wear, creating lasting emotional connections to their school.
