DAKOTA
In case someone didn't read all the way to the bottom of my latest blog. I would really like to see if I could get some comments on this. Thanks
****A late night thought – Other campuses in the system use a short one word descriptor to identify their campus e.g. State, the U, Northern, Mines. What if we started referring to ourselves as DAKOTA. I would be interested in your reactions. *****
posted by DSU President at 7:58 AM
11 Comments:
use D-State for short name or what is wrong with just DSU -- seems to work...but don't use Dakota, boring in my opinion
10:21 AM
I've heard it referred to as Dak-State for years. 'Dak' rhyming with back.
6:16 PM
the only reason I would object would be this: I've lived out of SD for 23 yrs and it is scary that the general population does not know there are TWO Dakotas. I always use Sodak for usernames online, but there's this entry from the "Urban Dictionary" which is quite funny:
SODAK:
"To be enlightened in the state of South Dakota. Also the most dangerous gang in the Dakota territory."
Now I think I like it even more. Add the U for University and you've got SoDak-U.
So now I must go research to see if this gang story is true.
Sincerely,
(grad from 1981)
1:17 AM
I agress with the last poster. I think that the name is fine as is. Since the acronym DSU is only three letters, it's not that hard to pronounce. The schools you mentioned that use a nickname have longer acronyms. DSU has made some very good changes over the years, but I don't think this proposed change would be beneficial.
1:55 AM
HORIBLE! YUK! A bad idea...it makes me think of Dakota Chips, Dakota Sunflower seeds, Dakota Woodwinds. Let’s get a little more creative here!
7:32 AM
The shorthand of a single syllable may be what people find catchy about the "U" or "State"; Dakota has as many syllables as does DSU, so there's less economy.
I like that such a name separates DSU from the mass of other -SU's. For that reason alone, I think a conversation about a nickname is worth having. For another take, and certainly for the short term while it's cool, perhaps we consider using a little "Leet Speak", the computer-ese language variant emphasizing the "elite" insider status of its participants.
Perhaps we might adopt an add that says simply " DSU. 1337." which translates, of course, to "DSU. Leet."
DSU might make it a sort of game to work 1337 (however subtly) into its ads and other materials; in so doing we could grab national attention.
Do it right and computer insiders nationwide will relish a piece of DSU apparel upon which the traditional date of founding has been replaced with the "date" 1337 .
Do it wrong, of course, and we look like Johnny-come-latelys, or worse, parents trying to talk and dress like their kids.
I think it's worth the risk. If there's an adjective appropriate to DSU grads, "elite" should be among them, and the computer-ese adds a very nice (ahem) "edge".
To see some examples of young people "sneaking" Leet Speak, look at the images in the Wikipedia entry for Leet, especially the two young men on Jeopardy and The Price is Right.
Other examples of Leet in use for DSU are:
|)$บ (DSU)
or
|)4XØ74 (Dakota) 57473 (State)
Finally, and here I quote from the Wikipedia article linked above, Leet has already made inroads into marketing, so we wouldn’t be “bleeding edge” were we to consider some sort of use: “Leet has become such a part of common culture that the cipher is used even in mainstream advertising, such as the Sears Kenmore "HE4T" washing machine and dryer. The entertainment industry has also joined in, with Numb3rs, Se7en and S1M0NE. The nu metal/rapcore band Linkin Park enciphered the tracks in R34N!M47!0N) in Leet.”
5:02 PM
I prefer DSU to "Dakota" myself. Why fix what isn't broken? And besides, why do we want to/have to be exactly like every other college in the state?
1:05 PM
I completely agree with the latest blog. DSU makes us unique as it is, why do we need to jump on the bandwagon?? And I would love to quote the previous blogger, "Why fix what isn't broken?"
12:27 AM
We've made so much progress on building a brand with "DSU." Now that we've had that name for 17 years, we're starting to get past the reputation of changing our name from Madison Normal, Eastern Normal, GBSTC, GBSC and DSC. Please keep DSU! We love it!
9:57 AM
actually using DSC was the best--
but i suppose DSU name is here to stay
2:32 PM
As a new alumni member I have mixed emotions about adding and twisting on a nickname for the sake of marketing. It changes the dynamic of the University I have come to love. Creating a nickname for the sake of marketing....great in theory, but I agree it does sound like parents trying to talk like their children. I don't 100% think it is a bad idea but I think it is something that just happens. I think a nickname has to come from the bottom up. You students pick one to use amongst themselves (not having it spoon fed to them in a marketing blitz) it catches.....and then you market it. Not the other way around. I do think the leet idea is overkill. Not all of us were or are computer majors of some form and fashion. Not all of us talk in that language. I wish DSU would start to recognize they have more programs going for them that are regionally and starting to be nationally known other than what happens in the CS worlds.
10:23 PM
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