Designing Lewis & Clark’s river otter is a daunting task. Our otter needs to be fierce enough for athletic competition, cute enough to appear on merch, smart enough to get through the admissions process, and friendly enough to be a part of our community. Plus, it needs to look good in orange.
Even before the mascot was announced in October, a trio of staff members was thinking about how to meet these goals. In March 2025, Seth Orensky, director of athletics communications; Mat Bowers, art director; and Stacey Kim, associate vice president of communications, started making plans for the design process.
Due to the scope of the project, working with an outside design firm was a given. Last March, Seth, Mat, and Stacey submitted a request for proposal to five agencies with experience in athletics and brand identity. Two of the five agencies were based in Portland. “We consider Lewis & Clark as a Portland icon,” says Kim. “We had a preference for working with an agency that would understand our city and how it influences our identity.”
The RFP process concluded with a clear winner: Wieden + Kennedy, the global ad agency founded in Portland and best known for creating Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign. W+K has deep roots in and respect for Portland, and a history of partnering with local institutions to celebrate what makes Portland special. “We were thrilled that Wieden + Kennedy shared our excitement about building school spirit through the mascot development process. It’s a passion project for them,” adds Kim. “Wieden + Kennedy’s creative thinking, design skill, and storytelling are unparalleled. It’s been a joy to collaborate with them and share their love of Portland, and of design.”
Throughout the fall 2025 semester, the Wieden + Kennedy team conducted seven focus groups with a wide cross-section of the L&C community, including students, athletes, coaches, faculty staff, and alumni. They also spent time exploring and getting to know campus, even attending the Homecoming football game.
The Mascot Implementation Committee (MIC), chaired by Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Ben Meoz, has been the main group providing feedback to the W+K creative team during five rounds of design. The MIC also recruited a group of faculty, staff, students, and alumni nicknamed “The 150” to provide input throughout the process via Google polls and surveys.
The result is a confident and proud River Otter that we hope will resonate with our entire community when it is revealed on February 20. “When Lewis & Clark approached us to redesign their mascot, we knew it was a chance to do so much more than that—this was also an opportunity to support the school’s overall culture and establish a deep sense of school pride for years to come,” says W+K Design Director Patrick Nistler. “We really hope people enjoy the river otter as much as we enjoyed designing it.”
