Bowling Green, Ky. - A political endorsement letter for Warren County Judge Executive candidate Harold Brantley erroneously implied endorsement of his campaign by Western Kentucky University and/or the WKU Alumni Association by illegally using the registered WKU logo and motto “The Spirit Makes the Master.”

University attorney Deborah Wilkins said: “Political endorsements such as this are not appropriate for a University, and endanger the University’s and the WKU Alumni Association’s non-profit tax exempt status. This letter used WKU copyrighted marks without our permission and appears to imply an official endorsement by the University or the WKU Alumni Association. We have instructed Greg Stivers, counsel for WKU with Kerrick, Stivers, Coyle and Van Zant, to require that a letter of retraction and correction be issued from the Brantley campaign disavowing any implied endorsement by the University or the WKU Alumni Association and clarifying that he did not have permission to use University marks.

“Although individuals are free to express their political support for any candidate, it is the use of WKU registered marks that is of concern to the institution. Neither WKU nor the WKU Alumni Association endorses political candidates. We know of no request for a mailing list from the Brantley campaign. University and WKU Alumni Association policies prohibit mailing lists being given out to groups or individuals for purposes other than institutional-related business. Our policy clearly states that lists may not be used for political mailings,” Wilkins said.

More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.

For more information, contact Deborah Wilkins, (270) 745-5398.

-WKU-
"A leading American university with international reach"

Office of Media Relations
Western Kentucky University
1906 College Heights Blvd., Bowling Green, Ky. 42101-3576
Phone: (270)745-4295 - Fax: (270)7455387 - E-Mail: western@wku.edu