The LSU Corp of Cadets collaborated with textiles, apparel design and merchandising students to generate logos and insignias in hopes of creating new and appealing merchandise.
Deputy Corps Commander Gavin Lanning, a senior studying international trade and finance, saw a need to innovate the corps’ merchandising to reach an audience beyond the cadets themselves.
“We’ve really been lacking in the department of merchandising and spreading our name through merchandising on campus within our group and out of our group to include whether that be students on campus, parents, grandparents of people in the Corps of Cadets, teachers, professors, veterans, whatever it may be,” Lanning said.
Lanning realized he needed ideas from people that could cater towards those outside of the cadets. Yudy Reyes, a textile, apparel and merchandising senior, is also a member of the corps and shared Lanning’s urge for a design makeover.
“Over the past few years I’ve been in ROTC, we’ve always had some type of what we call a ‘morale t-shirt,’ so we’ll wear it to like the PT in the morning or any events just to represent the ROTC program as a whole,” Reyes said. “I feel like every year we struggle just to find a good design that doesn’t scream military 100%.”
Reyes pitched Lanning on the idea of reaching out to Mary Elliot, the instructor of a product development class, to collaborate on the creation of new designs. Elliot agreed, and turned the project into a class assignment.
“I just thought what a wonderful program that is a part of LSU,” Elliot said. “It has been a part of LSU for a long time and you don’t normally see military organizations collaborating with apparel fashion students on something.”
Jean Maleszewski, a junior studying textiles, apparel and merchandising, participated in the creation of the new designs and as a result had the opportunity to learn more about corps members and the work they do, disproving some common preconceptions along the way.
“They have lives and they have other interests,” Maleszewski said. “They’re allowed to explore those and it was really cool getting to see how the ROTC helps enhance their lives more so than it takes on, which I think is a really big stereotype.”
The corps hopes that expanding their merchandising will not only allow them to grow, but spread awareness about LSU’s deep-rooted military history.
“Obviously with any group whether that be a student club or an international organization, whatever it may be, spreading the word and building the organization is what keeps you alive,” Lanning said. “We wanted to bring awareness because LSU started as a military institute. That was the core founding in the 1800s of what we were.”
The corps dates back to LSU’s founding in the 1860s to when the university was known as Louisiana State Seminary of Learning and Military Academy, and boasts of an accomplished history. During WWII the university claims it was top five in producing officers, with over 5,000 former students having served as officers during this time.
Up until 1969 every male student was mandated to participate in the corps their freshman and sophomore year. Today LSU has over 300 cadets involved in the program.
Reyes encourages prospective students to join the cadets and not to be afraid of the challenge, pitching the experience as tough, but rewarding.
“ROTC was in a weird way the first place I made friends,” Reyes said. “Because you start to hang out with these people and you’re through all these things that might suck like sleeping out in the woods for three days, getting rained on when you’re out there, all these different experiences, but you end up building this bond and this trust and you see each other almost every single day.”
