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SUNY Canton Adopts Kangaroos as New Nickname

Formal approval of four-athletics also announced.

Unveiling Ceremony Photo Gallery

In a campus-wide ceremony on Thursday, SUNY Canton unveiled its new logo and nickname, and also announced that the college has been formally accepted as a full member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). SUNY Canton will begin competing in four-year athletics in the fall of 2007.

SUNY Canton has adopted Kangaroos as their new logo and nickname. It will immediately replace the Northstars, which had supplanted Northmen in 1995.

"We feel the new nickname is an appropriate reflection of SUNY Canton and the college's uncompromising progress," President Joseph L. Kennedy said. "Kangaroos can only move forwards, not backwards. It also mirrors our global approach toward education. With our tremendously successful distance learning efforts, we can be found around the world. As demonstrated by the growth of SUNY Canton Online, we are not limited by geographical boundaries. We have students in the Ukraine, Russia, and Japan. I wouldn't be surprised if we enroll students from Australia in the near future. "

SUNY Canton began the process of finding a new logo and nickname last fall as they were transitioning into a four-year athletic program. The college contracted with Studio Simon, a national graphic design company, to develop a new identity for SUNY Canton. The college was looking for a unique new name and following an exhaustive study and input from faculty and staff, student-athletes and administrators, Kangaroos was chosen as the final product. SUNY Canton is one of just three colleges in the country with Kangaroos as their mascot.

"This is a historic time for SUNY Canton," said athletic director Diane Para. "This college continues to move forward with four-year athletics in an outstanding organization and many new academic programs, not just here but around the world. While many people consider Kangaroos to be cute and friendly-looking, they are actually fiercely competitive and aggressive. Our athletes identified with those characteristics."

SUNY Canton's application into the NAIA was accepted this past weekend at the national convention in Kansas City, Mo. The Kangaroos will join the Sunrise Conference which includes Paul Smith's College, Fisher College in Boston, College of St. Joseph in Rutland, Vt., University of Maine at Machias, University of Maine at Fort Kent, and Vermont Technical College in Randolph Center, Vt.

SUNY Canton will also be building an $18 million athletic and convocation center in the next couple of years, and a new $1.8 million all-weather, lighted synthetic turf field is scheduled to open this fall.

SUNY Canton offers a wide variety of career-driven bachelor's, associate, and certificate programs, as well as three master's degrees in conjunction with SUNYIT, Utica. Most of SUNY Canton's new four-year programs are designed so students can take them on-campus, online, or both. SUNY Canton OnLine features more than 65 courses online each semester. The college will begin its four-year athletic program in the Fall 2007 semester.

March 22, 2007

Media inquiries should be directed to Matt Metcalf, Sports Information Director, or call 315/386-7302.

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