When university President Dan Mote arrived here about 10 years ago, the first thing he noticed was that then-president Brit Kirwan did not have a pin on his lapel. And so the order of the turtle pin was born.
Today, countless important contributors to the university – such as deans, vice presidents and generous donors – have a turtle pin of their own as Mote has built a tradition of handing the signature symbol out to those he deems worthy.
Outgoing University Senate Chair Ken Holum is the latest in the long line of recipients, after Mote took off his pin and fastened it to Holum’s suit jacket during the Senate Executive Committee breakfast at Stamp Student Union on Tuesday morning.
“It’s a considerable honor,” Holum said.
Ten years ago, Mote turned to his wife Patsy, a graphic designer who has served on numerous state art councils, and gave her specifications for crafting the charms.
“The pin should be bright and big, but not too big,” he said. “You should be able to see it from 20 feet away. The texture must look like a terrapin. It can’t set off alarms in airports. And I had to own the design – meaning you can’t buy it in a store. You can only get a pin from me.”
When the gold-colored turtle pins arrived from a pinmaker in Taiwan, Mote wore his every day and began to dole them out discreetly to faculty and administrators.
“It’s a subtle process,” he said. “You don’t advertise it. When you find someone deserving, you give them a pin. It takes about three years before people start to develop Terrapin envy. People started to lust after these pins.”
Patsy Mote said she has encountered many people over the last 10 years who are desperate to know what you have to do to get them, including students.
“His answer is always the same: ‘They’re very expensive,'” she said, laughing.
Holum said he plans on sporting his when he wears business attire, as it doesn’t particularly go with jeans. But many other enthusiastic members of the special order wear theirs every day, just like Mote.
Provost Nariman Farvardin, who was pinned when he was dean of the engineering school, dons his daily, even off of the campus. At dean’s meetings, everyone flashes their golden Terrapins, he said.
“These people who have done something great at the university, now they have a club,” Farvardin said. “It creates a sense of pride.”
James Harris, the dean of the College of Arts and Humanities, paralleled the turtle pins to the Knights of the Round Table and said he wears his everywhere – except for on the golf course – after Mote pinned him 10 years ago at a Christmas party. The pin often becomes a topic of conversation at restaurants and get-togethers, where everyone always want to know, “How can I get one?” or “Where can I buy it?” To which Harris always responds, “You can’t.”
Harris said the pin symbolizes that “the president appreciates the work I’ve done,” adding that the pins are “a nice thing to do” to promote camaraderie.
“It’s a recognition,” Harris said.
Mote said he only ever heard of one person giving theirs away, though Patsy said some have been spotted on eBay. During the first years of the tradition, someone stole one off of Mote’s suit jacket, after he took it off in the Memorial Chapel.
“I found that especially uncivilized,” Mote said.
The whole point of the tradition is to promote a more unified university, Mote said.
“For the president to give something to someone that they might find meaningful, and something they might actually use, it builds a sense of bonding,” Mote said.
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