Themeline

The university has established a series of themelines that reinforce Iowa State's strategic goal of "becoming the best university in the nation to fulfill our land-grant responsibilities." There are three primary themelines that are used in conjunction with our university nameplate. They are "Becoming the best.", "Helping you become your best.", and "Where you can become your best.". Each themeline used in combination with our university nameplate builds upon our overall goal in specific ways. "Becoming the best." should be used on communication materials that position the broad university as a whole.

"Helping you become your best." should be used on communication materials about our programs and services directed towards the individual reading or listening to our message.

"Where you can become your best" should be used only on communication materials for potential faculty and staff.

Themelines should be used in combination with our university nameplate as a signature at the end of a communication. The correct alignment for a themeline is always flush left. The only situations where the themeline may be used with the nameplate at the beginning of a communication is on interoffice communications, fax cover sheets and faculty/staff recruitment ads. Themelines do not appear on any stationery items. Take the time to understand who your communication is directed to when choosing a themeline. The following are aspects to consider when using the nameplate in combination with a themeline:

Area of isolation - Designated free space that surrounds the nameplate to provide visual impact
Color - single color or two color combination
Minimum size - smallest acceptable size to ensure legibility and quality

Digitized versions of the nameplate/location combination are available for download on the Printing Services web site. If further explanation is required, please refer to our contacts list for the office that can provide you with the appropriate information.

Area of Isolation

An area of isolation must be provided for the nameplate/themeline combination. Do not place type, photos, or any other elements within this area. The amount of space surrounding all four sides of the nameplate/themeline combination is determined by half the height of the nameplate.s large capital letters (I, S, or U).

If further explanation is required, please refer to our contacts list for the office that can provide you with the appropriate information.

Color

The following colors for our nameplate/themeline combination preserve the integrity of our identity and should be used whenever possible:

Red Pantone CMYK HEX RGB	186 0/100/81/4 CC0033 204/0/51	Black The nameplate may be reproduced in black when budget or other concerns prevent the use of other approved colors.
Khaki Pantone CMYK HEX RGB	449 55/56/87/49 333300 76/69/43	White The nameplate may be more visible when reversed out to white in some situations, such as against a dark-colored background or against dark areas of a photograph.
Warm Grey Pantone CMYK HEX RGB	412 60/66/68/65 333333 55/47/43

The nameplate/themeline combination may be printed either in one color or in a two-color combination. The examples below show acceptable color combinations.

If further explanation is required, please refer to our contacts list for the office that can provide you with the appropriate information.

Minimum Size

The size of our nameplate's large capitals should be no smaller than 1 pica (.17 of an inch) in cap height, to ensure sharp and legible reproduction.

If further explanation is required, please refer to our contacts list for the office that can provide you with the appropriate information.