Williams Baptist College Unveils New Look and Large Freshman Class Boosts Enrollement

Williams Unveils New Look

Williams Baptist College has unveiled a new look on its logos and publications.  The new aesthetic package is the result of an extensive rebranding effort undertaken by the college over the past several months.

“Our new branding will not only help communicate our long-standing reputation for quality, but express our image and story in a fresh and compelling way,” said Dr. Tom Jones, WBC’s president.  “We want everyone to appreciate and be familiar with all we have to offer as a private, Christian liberal arts college.”

Williams worked with Jonesboro marketing firm Doxa to develop its branding package.

“Williams Baptist College already has a strong brand by reputation. What we have done is refresh the brand identity, by creating and implementing a better and more intentional management of the evidence that makes it a strong brand,” noted Dana Kelley of Doxa.

The process began with a discovery phase of the existing WBC brand, accomplished through a series of interviews with students, parents, faculty, alumni, community members, and other stakeholders.

“Armed with that understanding, we then set about developing a series of possible strategies for positioning, tag lines, and brand visual language to communicate the essence of what Williams is,” Kelley said.

The WBC name is now displayed in a typeset that is sleeker and more contemporary than the previous logo.  Accompanying the name is a new mark, the Williams “W,” composed of intersecting lines and angles. Those intersections convey a message about Williams, according to Kelley.

“The new Williams Baptist College brand identity is about the strength and the unique student experience that emerges at the intersections of higher education and faith, of spiritual life and academic life, of diverse cultures and the common ground of Christianity, just to name a few,” he noted.

“The new logo literally reflects this in its composition, while maintaining the familiarity of the Williams blue color and strong presence of the letter W.”

The W also serves as background for the updated Williams Eagles athletic logo.  A stylized Eagle’s head is emblazoned across the mark, giving WBC sports teams a distinctive logo that also ties in with the college’s new look.

“For 74 years, we have maintained an historically solid brand built on the incredible sacrifices of stellar educators and their enduring commitment to follow Jesus Christ,” Jones commented.  “Though we have a new logo and color scheme, the branding campaign simply helps us communicate anauthentic Christian passion for the Gospel and the eternal impact it can make in a college student’s life and in the lives they will touch.”

The branding affects WBC’s Internet presence and all of its printed materials, including recruiting materials and a new publication foralumni and friends, known as Forward, which recently published its first issue.

Large Freshman Class Boosts Williams Enrollment

 

(Walnut Ridge,  Ark.) – Williams Baptist College recorded its second largest freshman class in recent history this fall.  The influx of freshmen, coupled with increased numbers at off-campus extensions, helped WBC notch a slight increase in its overall enrollment.

 

Total enrollment at Williams this fall is 574 students, compared to 566 last year.  That number includes 156 freshmen on the main campus at Walnut Ridge, which is a 14 percent increase over last year.

 

“We are delighted with the number and the quality of students in this freshman class.  This was only three students short of a record for us.  Equally important, this group of freshmen is engaged and already working hard on their college education,” said Angela Flippo, vice president for enrollment management.

 

WBC’s headcount was also boosted by numbers at its off-campus extensions, where 73 are enrolled this fall.  Williams offers courses at Bradford, Ark., as well as Hoxie High School and Ridgefield Christian School in Jonesboro.

 

“Our admissions office is to be congratulated for a great job in recruiting such a large and high caliber group of students,” said WBC President Dr. Tom Jones.  “Our focus is to help these students become exceptional graduates prepared to engage local and global cultures through a Christ-centered worldview.”

 

The number of WBC students at the Walnut Ridge campus stood at 501, which is down from last year’s 520.  The college attributed the decline to a drop in returning students, as well as fewer transfer students.  The full time equivalent, or FTE, on the main campus fell from 521 last year to 503 this fall.

 

“We had an uncommonly large graduating class in May, which decreases the number of students returning in the fall,” Flippo said.  “We are also implementing new strategies to increase our retention, and we are confident these will help us build enrollment in the future.”

 

Williams is a four-year, liberal arts college at Walnut Ridge.