By Thea Gribilas
The Faculty of Communication and Design (FCAD) at Ryerson will be renamed “The Creative School,” FCAD dean Charles Falzon announced on July 5.
The name change has already been formally approved by the university and will come into effect on Aug. 16.
According to Rana Latif, the director of strategic development and marketing at FCAD, the rebranding of the faculty is estimated to cost between $200,000 and $250,000 and will be funded by the FCAD annual budget, targeted revenue, and fundraising allocation.
In an email to The Eyeopener, Falzon said “the repositioning of FCAD as The Creative School comes after two years of research and input from the FCAD community.”
According to Falzon, a working group of students, chairs, faculty and staff from across FCAD, along with Ryerson’s central marketing team, have been considering the name change since September 2020.
However, the idea to rename FCAD came through “ongoing academic and strategic development” which began five years ago, with the goal of “[promoting] the faculty on a national and international scale and creat[ing] a brand that is identifiable, relevant and contemporary,” according to Falzon.
Over the last six months there have also been consultations with community members and discussions with alumni.
“The response has been very positive within all the schools and units for the new name with a revitalized mission,” said Falzon. “It was recognized that the new name will provide the faculty a clearer, cohesive and impactful brand with a more enticing and inspirational vision of the future.”
The announcement comes after renewed calls to change the name of Ryerson, the university’s namesake being one of the key architects of the Canadian residential school system.
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