Location: Kissimmee, Florida
Project: Seahawk Mascot & Leadership Identity
School Type: Middle School
School District: Osceola County School District
Background: Neptune Middle School (grades 6-8) focused on leadership development and empowerment but lacked cohesive branding capturing their strength and vision for student achievement.
Our Task: Create powerful Seahawks mascot resonating with middle schoolers while communicating leadership, confidence, and achievement potential.
Our Action: Designed bold profile seahawk head in shield with NEPTUNE MIDDLE SCHOOL/SEAHAWKS lockup, striking gold/black palette for athletics and leadership contexts.
Outcome: Confident Seahawks identity deployed across academics, athletics, leadership programs. Strengthened school pride and community recognition for grades 6-8.
Strategic Approach
Our research into middle school branding revealed the importance of creating identities that respect the developmental transition of adolescent students—neither too childish nor too mature. The visual system needed to project strength and aspiration while remaining accessible and engaging to the middle school audience.
The seahawk was selected as the ideal mascot for several strategic reasons:
- The hawk represents vision, leadership, and keen perception—qualities central to student development
- The “sea” prefix creates a natural connection to the “Neptune” school name
- The predatory bird symbolism communicates strength and competitive spirit
- The distinctive profile creates a strong, immediately recognizable silhouette
- The combination of maritime and avian elements offers rich visual territory
The color palette of gold, black, and silver/gray was strategically chosen to:
- Project confidence and achievement through the dominant gold
- Add sophistication and strength through the contrasting black
- Incorporate silver accents for distinction and premium positioning
- Create a distinctive presence that stands apart from other schools in the district
- Establish an aesthetic that appeals to middle school students’ desire for maturity
Design Development
Mascot Creation
The Seahawks mascot was developed with careful attention to both symbolic meaning and contemporary design principles:
- The profile hawk head creates a strong, confident expression with forward vision
- The stylized treatment balances realism with clean graphic forms
- The distinctive eye provides a focal point and suggests alertness and perception
- The integration within a shield framework references protection and achievement
- The star element adds distinction and suggests navigation and direction
The final design features a striking seahawk head positioned within a shield-inspired framework, with the “SEAHAWKS” wordmark boldly positioned below. The “NEPTUNE MIDDLE SCHOOL” designation anchors the top of the composition, creating a balanced hierarchy with strong visual impact and immediate recognition.
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