Three finalists for the Hilltop’s first tartan competition wait to discover which of their designs will become the official Bradley Tartan.
A panel of judges selected Kelly Beal, Carolyn Stewart and Tamie Yost as finalists from a pool of six design submissions.
Senior medical laboratory science major Yost said the prize is an opportunity to create a recognizable pattern that represents the university because a “tartan” is traditionally used as a symbol for family, town or region.
“As a student who has returned to Bradley for a second major, I feel a deep connection to the university,” Yost said. “Having my design selected would be an honor. It means that I truly am a part of the Bradley family.”
The competition, sponsored by the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences in partnership with Collegiate Tartan Apparel, allowed students to create designs to be used in future Bradley apparel.
Beal, a senior hospitality leadership major, said she learned about the competition from one of her instructors and thought it not only sounded interesting but also offered a chance to be part of something meaningful to the university.
“As I’m sure is the case with all college students, the monetary prize can go to good use,” Beal said. “But I’m a non-traditional college student and the single mother of a 9-year-old son, and he’s my motivation for everything I do now. For me, the idea that one day he will go to Bradley and wear apparel that his mom designed is the coolest thing I can imagine.”
Family and Consumer Science professor Kendra Brandes said from the three designs selected, first place will be determined by popular vote.
“If I was chosen as the winner, it would be an amazing honor,” Stewart said. “To make a tartan design that is going to be used for years to come and that I would see Bradley students wearing around would be amazing.”
Voting will be open to all students, faculty, staff, alumni and members of the community at www.bradley.edu/tartanvote between April 6 and 13. Part of the proceeds from the winning design will go to scholarship funds for students majoring in programs in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences.
