After a new design is chosen, the Oxford Police Department will recieve three new cars per year based on replacement need until the fleet has 20 cars in uniform. (File)
Within the coming year, Oxford Police Department (OPD) will be sporting a new look on its cruisers - a black and white design tailored by a Miami University student in the graphic design program.
According to Sgt. Jim Squance, students in ART 352: Identity Systems created 18 car composites that officers and community members will vote on to decide what the new cruisers will look like.
The officers at OPD will pick their top three, then the top three from the station will be tallied, and those will be posted on the police page at www.cityofoxford.org, so that community members get their say in voting for the graphics beginning Friday, March 9.
"The chief (Steve Schwein) thought this would be a good community project and a good way to get students involved," Squance said.
According to Squance, the police cars haven't been updated since 1992. He said the force will be getting about three new cars per year starting this year based on replacement need, until the fleet of about 20 is uniform.
The new cruisers will also feature a new black and white exterior that is different from the current all white cars. Squance said the price difference was marginal, and the new colors will mark OPD cruisers as unique from the other police agencies in surrounding areas and Miami University Police Department especially.
Tom Effler, associate professor and provost in the School of Fine Arts, was contacted by OPD last semester about his students taking on the project. Coincidentally, Effler said the Art 352 class already focused on logos, identities, and symbols for their class earlier in spring semester.
"We are on an academic mission rather than being a service to the community, but this (project) just happens to fit the curriculum and time frame," Effler said.
Effler said his students were put into a realistic circumstance in their field of graphic design by talking to the client, familiarizing themselves with the cars, and researching the project.
One student went so far as to take pictures of the cruisers and visit other local police stations to see their models.
Enjoy what you're reading?
Signup for our newsletter
Miami University junior Cole Johnston is a graphic design major and said he enjoyed researching and working with police to see exactly what they wanted in the design.
"An officer's car is his office and you can see a sense of pride he has in it," Johnston said. "You want to give it the ownership and respect the police deserve for serving Oxford. They will end up working in (the cruisers) for 15 years."
Oxford police take their cars home with them in order to respond quickly to a possible emergency. According to Squance, officers also maintain and clean the cars themselves. Squance said this lengthens the life of each cruiser when the responsibility of an officer's car rests solely on the officer.
After community members vote, a final design will be established, and the student creator of it will be able to put the work into a professional portfolio that will help in the profession of graphic design.
Effler said that all graphic design students must not only have a portfolio, but they must also finish a professional internship before they graduate.
Voting is scheduled to take place on the city of Oxford's Web site, under the police link.
Read More
How one professor and her classes are preserving Oxford’s Black history
By Sean Scott | March 20, 2024Jazma Sutton, an assistant professor of history, teaches The Black Midwest (HST 350Q) and Black Women in America (HST 450D) classes. In both courses, she has students working with the Smith Library of Regional History and Miami’s archives to document and preserve Black history in Oxford.
Miami faculty members recount Freedom Summer in new documentary
By Luke Macy | February 25, 2022After seven years of work, “Training for Freedom,” a documentary highlighting Oxford’s involvement in the Freedom Summer of 1964, premiered on PBS Western Reserve on Valentine’s Day.
“Documenting the COVID-19 Pandemic”: History in the making
By Alice Momany | August 29, 2021In March 2020, Miami University’s archives launched “Documenting the COVID-19 Pandemic,” a collection focused on life during the COVID-19 pandemic.