NSS Logo

THE NSS LOGO
What is it? What should it be??

NSS BOG Election Ballot, May 1987:

The BOG vote from the Minutes of the August 1987 Meeting:

NSS News, September 1987, page 309:

NSS News, October 1987, page 355:

The BOG Manual

Before the advent of the computer age, the BOG Manual was maintained as a paper document. All officers, directors, and committee chairs received a copy (about 400 pages), and periodic updates, including new and replacement pages, were provided in the "Monthly Mailings"

1. Hard Copy
The 1987 Board Act 27-476 that established the official logo design, as selected by the membership and the Board, was included in the manual, but the actual logo was not, since the method of reproduction did not allow it; only a black rectangular frame appeared. Hence the record of the "official" logo design became lost.

27-476 Official NSS Logo 8-7-87

The logo shown below is the official logo of the NSS and will be used by the Society for official purposes. Members and NSS groups may continue to use any of the traditional versions of Tom Culverwell's enduring original idea for ceremonial and non-official purposes if they wish.

An online version of the BOG Manual was added to the NSS Web site in ~1998.

2. Electronic Version
For reasons that remain unclear, this was the graphic logo that was placed in the online version of Act 27-476:

It obviously is not the same design approved by the Board in 1987. This logo version is found on some NSS books and other publications (Convention Guidebooks), notably those edited or published by Tom Rea and/or printed by Greyhound press.

As a result of the history discovered above, the Secretary to the Board amended the Board Manual (both print and electronic versions) to correctly reflect the motion and logo that were approved.

Subsequent Versions

1. Circa 1995

	This version appeared on the new NSS web site in 1995, but it's origin is unknown. However, the size and resolution of this image was not adequate for modern printing.
2. Mid-1990s
	So in the mid-1990's new NSS News Editor Dave Bunnell commissioned Bill Papke to create a high resolution digital image of the logo for use in the News. The result was this logo, three versions of which are found at www.caves.org/pub/nssnews/nss_graphics.htm. Over the years, this is the logo that has been used most for the Society's purposes:

However, it does not match the logo approved in 1987, as seen in the shape of the formations and the position of the right-hand "S."

3. March 2008
NSS OVP Cheryl Jones, noting the apparent discrepancy between the Act and general usage, put forward a motion at the March 2008 BOG Meeting to correct the situation. First, however, she engaged graphic artist Mike Dale to revise the design slightly to correct some small anomalies.

41) NSS Official Logo
Jones moved: Board Act 27-476 Official NSS Logo is amended to read:

27-476 Official NSS Logo
The logo shown below is the official logo of the NSS and will be used by the Society for official purposes. <Members and NSS groups may continue to use any of the traditional versions of Tom Culverwell's enduring original idea for ceremonial and non-official purposes if they wish.>

Proposed:

Current official (as she believed it to be, due to the incorrect logo included in the Board Manual):

Tom Rea's Version

The BOG, however, failed to pass this motion.

Since the motion failed, no change has occurred, and the official NSS logo remains what we have now, a black and white version of the logo approved by the membership and Board in 1987.

Current Situation and Proposal

1. Unofficial logos rule
Obviously a black and white, low resolution graphic is a not suitable rendering of a corporate logo for our official records and use, and as a result several general versions of the logo have been in print over the years since 1987.

2. What we need
The NSS needs a properly drawn logo with a resolution and clarity that will allow it to be used for printing. Additionally, it needs to be in color, with designated colors.

Further, a precise color rendition must be submitted to trademark the Society's logo.

3. Color Replica Produced
Mike Dale has re-created the official logo in color, as exact a replica as possible of the 1987 black and white version adopted by the Board. This is the logo that the NSS should be using from this point forward, rather than one of the other two versions in common use.

4. Plans
In light of the above, OVP Cheryl Jones will offer a motion in August to formally adopt the identical but full-color version of the black and white 1987 logo, which was prepared by Mike Dale:

5. Revert to 1987 logo
Since the March motion failed, no change has occurred, and the official NSS logo remains what we have now, a black and white version of the logo approved by the membership and Board in 1987."