Client: Sunrise Elementary School
Location: Kissimmee, Florida
Project: Seastar Mascot & Elementary Identity
School Type: Elementary School
School District: Osceola County School District
Background: Sunrise Elementary in Kissimmee, dedicated to academic excellence and well-rounded education, needed vibrant Seastar mascot establishing distinctive presence.
Our Task: Create friendly, approachable seastar mascot appealing to elementary children while projecting warmth and positivity for young learners.
Our Action: Designed bright Seastars identity with vibrant blue/gold palette—engaging system for educational and community contexts.
Outcome: Child-friendly Seastars brand deployed campus-wide. Identity inspires young imaginations while fostering school spirit and community connection.
- Create a system that balances playful charm with educational credibility
Strategic Approach
Our research into elementary school branding revealed the importance of creating identities that genuinely engage young children while providing the institutional credibility expected by parents and the community. The visual system needed to appear friendly and approachable while supporting the school’s educational mission.
The seastar was selected as the ideal mascot for several strategic reasons:
- The seastar creates an immediate phonetic connection to the “Sunrise” school name
- The star shape naturally suggests achievement, brightness, and aspiration
- The marine creature offers rich visual territory for friendly, approachable styling
- The five-point structure provides natural visual stability and recognition
- The character can be rendered in ways that appeal directly to young children
The color palette of royal blue, bright gold, and light blue accents was strategically chosen to:
- Create a vibrant, energetic presence through the dominant blue background
- Add warmth and positivity through the golden seastar character
- Create a nautical feel with the complementary blue tones
- Establish a distinctive presence that stands apart from other elementary schools
- Project a bright, optimistic aesthetic appropriate for young learners
Design Development
Mascot Creation
The Seastar mascot was developed with careful attention to both child appeal and brand versatility:
- The friendly, anthropomorphic seastar face creates immediate connection with young audiences
- The simplified, cartoonish treatment balances character with clean graphic forms
- The expressive features (eyes, smile, arms) provide personality and warmth
- The circular background creates a natural framing device while suggesting an ocean setting
- The character design communicates positivity and enthusiasm
The final design features a friendly seastar character centered in a circular badge with the “SUNRISE ELEMENTARY” designation curving along the top. The “SEASTARS” wordmark is boldly positioned below in a banner treatment, creating a balanced composition with strong visual hierarchy and immediate appeal to young children.
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