MSJ Graphic Design Students Make a Lasting Impact Through Innovative Brand Identity Design Course

At Mount St. Joseph University, graphic design education extends far beyond the classroom. Through the innovative Brand Identity Design (BID) course, students collaborate with nonprofit organizations to develop professional branding strategies, visual identities, and marketing materials that make a lasting impact in the community.

Led by Associate Professor of Art & Design Kurt Grannan, the course provides students with an opportunity to experience the complete design process while supporting organizations dedicated to improving the lives of others.

Rather than completing hypothetical classroom assignments, students work directly with nonprofit clients, conducting research, developing brand strategies, creating visual identities, and presenting professional design solutions. The experience culminates in substantial portfolio pieces that demonstrate students' ability to solve real-world problems, collaborate with clients, and deliver meaningful results.

The course follows what Grannan describes as a career ecosystem model, moving students through research, strategy, design, presentation, implementation, and professional opportunities. The results speak for themselves. Several nonprofit partners have implemented student-developed identities, secured funding for expansion, and continued using the designs years after their collaborations with MSJ.

Student Designs Help Nonprofits Grow and Succeed

One of the most significant outcomes of Brand Identity Design is the lasting impact students have on the organizations they serve.

Ohio Valley Voices / Northern Kentucky Voices

Among the course's recent successes is its partnership with Ohio Valley Voices, an organization supporting children who are deaf or hard of hearing as they develop listening and spoken-language skills.

MSJ students developed the brand positioning, strategy, and visual identity for its Northern Kentucky initiative, Northern Kentucky Voices. The organization implemented the student-developed identity and subsequently hired an MSJ student for additional freelance design work.

Since the collaboration, Northern Kentucky Voices has received more than $1 million in grant funding and has explored opportunities to collaborate with Cincinnati Children's Hospital. The identity created through the course provided a professional foundation as the organization continued its development and expansion.

In a letter to Grannan, Maria Sentelik, CEO of Ohio Valley Voices, praised the students' work: "Collaborating with Mount St. Joseph University in creating a brand identity for us was a wonderful experience for our organization." Sentelik emphasized that students conducted thorough research, developed strategic messaging, and created comprehensive design solutions aligned with the organization's mission.

She also recognized Grannan's leadership, including his participation in board and advisory meetings, which helped the organization understand how effective branding could support its long-term goals. "Having Mount St. Joseph University's faculty and students work directly with local nonprofits is a fantastic program that benefits everyone involved," Sentelik wrote.

Maya's Way / AIM for Wellbeing

Students also partnered with Maya's Way, a program associated with AIM for Wellbeing, to develop a recognizable identity that could strengthen community engagement. The organization implemented the student-designed logo, incorporating it into apparel worn by runners participating in Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon. This provided an opportunity for students to see their designs move beyond the computer screen and become part of a major community event.

Maya's Way and AIM for Wellbeing have since undergone an acquisition and continued expanding, demonstrating the importance of establishing a recognizable identity that can support organizational growth.

Healthy Moms & Babes

For Healthy Moms & Babes, an organization serving mothers, infants, and families, students developed a distinctive visual identity that continues to represent the nonprofit. The student-designed logo remains part of the organization's website and public presence. Students also created vehicle and bus wrap designs, extending the brand into neighborhoods and communities served by the organization.

The project demonstrated how thoughtful design can increase an organization's visibility while communicating its mission to the people who depend on its services.

Morgan Township Community Park

The partnership with Morgan Township Community Park offers another example of how student work can contribute to lasting community improvements. Students developed the park's visual identity, including its logo and signage, to help establish a welcoming and recognizable presence.

Since the collaboration, the organization has received grants supporting the development of an inclusive and accessible 14-acre community park in Morgan Township. The student-created identity continues to be used as the park develops, demonstrating how graphic design contributes to projects that improve community spaces and accessibility.

The Hive / Contemplative Commons Cincinnati

Students also collaborated with The Hive; a Cincinnati nonprofit that has since evolved into Contemplative Commons Cincinnati under Executive Director Chris LaRue. The branding strategy developed through the course helped establish a foundation for the organization's continued growth and evolution.

This partnership illustrated how design students can help organizations clarify their missions and develop identities that remain relevant as their programs change.

Gorman Heritage Farm

At Gorman Heritage Farm, a 122-acre nonprofit educational farm in Evendale, Ohio, students focused on strengthening the organization's fundraising efforts through strategic design. Rather than creating isolated promotional materials, students explored how consistent messaging, visual identity, and communication could support fundraising, strengthen community recognition, and contribute to long-term sustainability.

The collaboration demonstrated how design strategy can support a nonprofit's mission even when the primary objective extends beyond creating a new logo.

Graduates Reflect on the Professional Value of Brand Identity Design

Perhaps the strongest evidence of the course's success comes from MSJ graduates who have carried their classroom experiences into professional careers.

Macy Hoeing, 2024 BFA Graphic Design Graduate

For Macy Hoeing, the Morgan Township Community Park project proved especially valuable in preparing her for her career in the signage industry. "Working with a real client, especially the client my class worked with (Morgan Township Park) played a HUGE role in my career that I now have!" Hoeing explained.

Today, Hoeing designs logos, develops branding guides, and creates signs, murals, and trail signage many of the same types of projects she encountered in the BID course. "What we did in the classroom in Brand Identity Design was quite literally foreshadowing to what my future career was going to be and I had no idea," Hoeing reflected. She also credits the course with teaching her to collaborate with colleagues, communicate with clients, and navigate feedback from boards and committees.

Her experience demonstrates how a meaningful undergraduate portfolio project can translate directly into professional opportunities after graduation.

Kayla Hess, 2024 BFA Graphic Design Graduate

For Kayla Hess, the opportunity to work with an actual organization helped bridge the gap between classroom learning and professional design. "BID definitely helped me to see a connection between what I learned in the classroom and what I might do professionally because it gave me the chance to design for an organization, creating assets that are needed in the real-world," Hess shared.

She explained that the posters, infographics, and logos she developed as a student prepared her for the flyers, catalogs, advertisements, and other marketing materials she now creates professionally. Hess also emphasized the importance of understanding audiences before beginning the design process. "The most valuable thing I took away from the brand identity experience was researching the target audience and building vision boards," Hess explained.

Her experience highlights the course's emphasis on research, communication, and design solutions that respond to the needs of actual clients.

Trevor Theuerling, 2021 BFA Graphic Design Graduate

Trevor Theuerling worked with the nonprofit People Working Cooperatively during his Brand Identity Design experience. For Theuerling, collaborating with a real organization challenged him to move beyond personal design preferences and consider how visual communication supports an organization's mission. He explained that the experience helped him understand that designers are "not just making visually appealing brand assets, but helping tie the organizations mission deeper into the people who they work with and help."

Theuerling also identified peer critique and professional presentations as particularly valuable aspects of the course. "Advocating for your artwork and understanding the decisions you made will help you to become a successful designer," he reflected.

His experience reinforces the importance of learning to explain design decisions, respond to criticism, and develop solutions that serve clients rather than simply reflect an individual designer's preferences.

Building Professional Portfolios Before Graduation

A distinguishing feature of MSJ's Brand Identity Design course is the opportunity for students to graduate with professional-quality portfolio projects developed for actual clients.

Students can demonstrate far more than their ability to create an attractive logo. Their portfolios showcase research, strategic thinking, brand development, client communication, and practical applications across multiple formats. These comprehensive projects give graduates compelling examples to discuss during job interviews, allowing them to explain not only what they designed, but why they made particular decisions and how their work addressed a client's needs.

The course also creates opportunities for professional networking and employment, as demonstrated by the Northern Kentucky Voices partnership, which resulted in freelance work for an MSJ student.

Design Education With a Purpose

Brand Identity Design reflects Mount St. Joseph University's commitment to experiential learning, professional preparation, and service to the community. Through partnerships with nonprofits, students discover that graphic design is more than a commercial skill. It is a powerful means of communicating ideas, strengthening organizations, and improving the communities they serve.

For nonprofit partners, the collaborations provide access to research, creative thinking, and professional design solutions that might otherwise be difficult to obtain. For students, they offer valuable professional experience and portfolio pieces that can help launch their careers.

The appreciation expressed by Ohio Valley Voices CEO Maria Sentelik captures the value of this approach: "Thank you for your dedication to fostering such a talented group of emerging design professionals." From helping establish a new nonprofit identity to supporting the development of an accessible community park, MSJ graphic design students are creating work that continues to make a difference long after the semester ends.

Through Brand Identity Design, Mount St. Joseph University is demonstrating how innovative teaching, meaningful community partnerships, and professional preparation can come together to benefit students, graduates, and the Greater Cincinnati community.

Source: Brand Identity Design course outcomes, graduate reflections from Macy Hoeing (2024), Kayla Hess (2024), and Trevor Theuerling (2021), and correspondence from Maria Sentelik, CEO of Ohio Valley Voices, provided for this article.