UL Lafayette says 'No' to grass-roots mascot effort
LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) -- The campaign to make Albineaux “Al” Boudreaux the new mascot of the UL Ragin Cajuns appears to be dead in the water.
UL graduate Cory St. Ewart has been spearheading a campaign to make Albineaux "Al" Boudreaux a potential new mascot for the university.
After nearly two years of campaigning, St. Ewart received a letter Tuesday from UL's Associate Vice President in the Office of Communications & Marketing Jennifer Stephens that said the school has no intention of adopting the albino alligator as a sanctioned mascot.
"The university has not endorsed this concept, nor does it intend to do so," the letter reads. "While we appreciate your enthusiasm, this unauthorized concept does not align with the University's brand, its values or interests. Your continued promotion of this idea on social media and other platforms has the potential to harm our strong national reputation by creating brand confusion."
Stephens goes on to say the university is not affiliated, nor does it endorse or control any fundraising efforts to support the proposed mascot.
St. Ewart has spent nearly two years working on designs, presentations and possibilities for Albineaux to be what he says is a missing piece of the gameday experience at UL.
The campaign has garnered a mixed reaction from students, alumni and fans of the university. Supporters of the idea have showed their support through apparel, illustrations and designing logos.
St. Ewart insists this was always intended to be something for students and alum to be proud of, never to harm the university's reputation or infringe on their intellectual property.
"This was always supposed to be a fan-led effort that's outside of the university," St. Ewart said. I've been open from the beginning, this is a grassroots camapign, I was never intending to use the university's IP (intellectual property) in Albineux's creation."