NEAC rebranded as 'United East'

The North Eastern Athletic Conference – with which the Pennsylvania College of Technology Wildcats have been affiliated since attaining full membership in NCAA Division III with the 2014-15 academic year – unveiled a brand-new logo and website Monday in announcing its rebirth as the United East.

"This is a monumental day for our conference as we begin a new era as the United East," Commissioner Stephanie Dutton said. "Our new identity is a true reflection of our membership and our core values. As a conference that serves as the home for a diverse group of institutions, we have a mark that clearly conveys our desire to continually rise upward together as a united group."

The United East teamed up with Skye Design Studios (which designed the current Penn College Wildcat and related visuals) and SIDEARM Sports to bring a completely fresh look to the conference, which highlights its diversity as well as its mission to continually push itself to become a premier league within Division III.

Beginning in early February, the conference paired up with Skye Design Studios to help develop a new identity that would elevate the look and feel of the conference as a whole. With help from all nine core member institutions, a decision was made to instill a name change as to better represent the true identity of the conference. The name "United East" rose to the forefront as it describes the conference's commitment to collaborate on a shared mission in a diverse environment while still giving a nod to the geographical placement of the member schools.

"I would like to thank our Assistant Commissioner Sam Carges for his tireless efforts in serving as the point person for this project and all of our member institutions for being engaged, open, and excited throughout this process," Dutton added. "But this rebrand would not have been possible without the leadership and creativity of Skye Design Studios. Between Skye's outstanding work and the insight of our conference members, our vision for the future came to life in a way that fulfilled our goal of developing a modern look that would set us apart."

Once the name was decided upon, the design and color scheme of the logo was developed. The bold color combination of Volt Green, Skye Blue and North Eastern Blue helped separate the United East from the rest of the Division III landscape while the shape gave the logo a feeling of moving upward and forward as a cohesive unit through its "Flying V" likeness. The use of three shapes in the logo represents the conference's individual members coming together to move toward a common destination and acknowledges a continued commitment to Division III.

"It's always exciting to be a part of something new and what made this project even more rewarding was the opportunity to go through it together with such an amazing group," stated Skye Dillon, lead designer of Skye Design Studios. "I believe the potential that existed there really energized everyone involved and the final identity is symbolic of that collaborative vision for the future of the conference."

While the logo rebrand was taking place, the soon-to-be United East was also partnering with SIDEARM to help reinvigorate the look of its website. With a team of coders and designers, SIDEARM helped orchestrate a complete web redesign that organized and enhanced the United East's look on both the internet and on mobile devices.

The United East Conference is home to nine member institutions that compete at the highest level of NCAA Division III athletics. Founded in 2004 as NEAC, the United East has seen its membership evolve to one that now encompasses schools in Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia.

In addition to ranging from urban to rural campuses, the United East prides itself on being one of the most diverse conferences in Division III. It is comprised of both public and private schools as well as faith-based institutions, technical colleges and the largest deaf and hard-of-hearing institution in the United States.

Joining Penn College among the nine core members are Gallaudet University, Lancaster Bible College, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks, Penn State Harrisburg, St. Mary's College of Maryland, SUNY Morrisville and Wells College.