Hampton University Joins Statewide Higher Ed Messaging Campaign Launch of New Mascot Video

HAMPTON, VA (June 18, 2020) — Hampton University, The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), the Virginia Secretary of Education’s Office, and the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV) teamed up to launch Phase II of the statewide #VaHigherEdTogether messaging campaign today with a new video featuring the mascots from 45 of Virginia’s colleges and universities.

“We miss our students and look forward to their safe return to our ‘Home by the Sea’ in August,” said Dr. William R. Harvey, Hampton University President. “We encourage everyone to be diligent, stay strong, and to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) recommendations to help decrease the spread of the virus. We are in this together.”

As with the first phase of the campaign featuring a collage of college and university presidents holding signs, the mascot video offers a message of hope for Virginia high school and college students and their families:

Pride. It’s what we mascots represent.
Pride in our schools. Pride in Virginia. Pride in YOU.
The coronavirus is no match for our pride.
We are here for you now. We support and miss you.
And we look forward to welcoming you back safely to campus.
Be safe. Be informed. Be well.

Sincerely, Virginia’s College & University Mascots

“We are excited to share this message of solidarity among Virginia’s outstanding colleges and universities,” said Virginia Secretary of Education, Atif Qarni. “Mascots represent school pride and unity, which offer comfort to students during these uncertain times. We hope this new video will ignite excitement in Virginia students as they make plans to further their education this summer and fall.”
The campaign will continue in the coming months with additional messages for current and future college students.

SCHEV is the state’s coordinating agency for higher education. With The Virginia Plan for Higher Education, SCHEV is dedicated to making Virginia the best-educated state by 2030. For more on The Virginia Plan:schev.edu/TheVirginiaPlan.

CICV is a nonprofit, 501(c)(6) organization representing 27 accredited nonprofit independent colleges and universities in Virginia. CICV works collaboratively in the areas of public policy, cost containment and professional development as well as providing support to our member institutions and their students in the areas of government relations, institutional collaboration, research and public relations. www.cicv.org