This spring, seniors Chloe Gramelspacher and Olivia Michaelson were selected by the Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (RCASH) to create a marketing and branding project for its Center for Student Success.

Both are BFA graphic design students within the Department of Art and Design.

RCASH’s Director of Marketing, Communications and External Relations, Bryce Bewley, commissioned the project. It involved creating 12 posters to represent each department and school within the college. These poster images will be used by the student success center.

“The project was an opportunity for design students to engage in hands-on pedagogy to showcase university and college specific brand-work,” said RCASH Associate Dean Dr. Jake Simmons.

RCASH talent meets need for fresh look

Bewley’s goal was to develop a fresh message for prospective students featuring RCASH’s wide range of academic programs.

“That range is both inspiring and difficult to distill into a single, cohesive message,” he said.

To meet that need, Bewley zeroed in on creating poster images to represent each of RCASH’s 12 departments and schools. The images can be used for a variety of marketing and communication purposes, he noted.

And the means to make this happen rested within RCASH’s talented student body.

“I was confident that our students had the creativity, skill and professionalism to bring this project to life,” he said.

Highlighting RCASH student success center

The poster project seemed an ideal way to merge marketing needs with another of Bewley’s goals — highlighting RCASH’s Center for Student Success. The center provides academic advisement and study resources.

For Bewley, a big part of RCASH student success is its vast student talent. He wanted a way to showcase that talent, and the poster project presented the perfect opportunity.

With that in mind, he approached art and design’s department head, Vonda Yarberry, for guidance. Yarberry in turn introduced Bewley to Dr. Jacek Fraczek, who taught the BFA in design Spring 2025 practicum course.

Bewley presented the project idea as a competition to Fraczek’s practicum class. The competition “allowed me to see a wide range of stunning designs and gave me valuable insight into how our students perceive and represent the various departments across the college,” Bewley said.

Gramelspacher and Michaelson brought on board

As members of the practicum class, Gramelspacher and Michaelson were eager to participate in the contest. They worked as a team to design a poster for the Department of Political Science and Philosophy.

“Though we were a team on this project, we came up with two very different designs,” Gramelspacher said.

The panel chose Gramelspacher’s version. “Chloe is an incredibly talented designer [and] illustrator, so it was no surprise to me that her poster was chosen,” Michaelson said.

In particular, Gramelspacher’s use of the Citizen Scholar statue caught the judges’ attention.

“I initially chose the ‘Citizen Scholar’ statue because I thought it was a strong visual representation of an educated graduate of the university and citizen of the world,” she said.

Simmons agreed, noting that, “The use of the Citizen Scholar statue in front of Strong Hall, specifically the work to connect the image to all schools and departments in RCASH, represents outstanding strategy and creativity.”

Once she heard she had won the competition, Gramelspacher immediately asked Michaelson to remain on the team.

“I was so excited when she asked me to do the project with her,” Michaelson said. “Posters are one of my favorite things to design, so the idea of being able to do six for my practicum project was an amazing opportunity. There was no way I was going to refuse.”

Citizen Scholar captures RCASH vision

After consulting with Bewley, the pair decided to use the Citizen Scholar as the focal point for the remaining 11 posters. “It could represent any Missouri State graduate becoming an educated and well-rounded citizen of the world,” Gramelspacher explained.

From there, the race was on to create quality work within a limited timeframe. Gramelspacher and Michaelson numbered the departments from 1-12 and used a random number generator to determine who would work on which department’s design.

Gramelspacher designed posters for these academic units in RCASH:

• Political Science and Philosophy
• Music
• Military Science
• Theatre and Dance
• Languages, Cultures and Religions
• School of Defense and Strategic Studies

Michaelson designed posters for the remaining academic units:

• Sociology, Anthropology and Gerontology
• English
• History
• Art and Design
• Communication, Media, Journalism and Film
• School of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Gramelspacher estimated that the project took about six weeks to complete.

Real client scenario reinforces learned skillsets

The project immediately forced Gramlespacher and Michaelson to apply the artistic and communication skills they have acquired through their degree program.

To manage the project, Gramelspacher created a project timeline that included tentative due dates for sketches, preliminary designs, finished posters and printing. She also created a presentation for the practicum class that explained the project’s process. Michaelson created the process boards for the exhibition.

Meanwhile, the pair used Adobe Illustrator® graphics creation software for the entire project. During the process, they gained more in-depth knowledge about the software’s many tools and options.

Feedback process enlightening

Initially, Gramelspacher and Michaelson sent their basic sketch ideas to Bewley, who served as liaison between them and the department heads. The designers then adjusted the posters based on feedback from Bewley, the department heads and Fraczak, their practicum instructor.

Fraczak in particular was instrumental in guiding the pair through the feedback process and helping the two prepare their exhibition, according to Gramelspacher.

“Our professor provided some feedback on the more nitpicky parts of the designs — things that no one who’s not a designer would notice,” Michaelson added.

Both Gramelspacher and Michaelson acknowledged they learned from the experience, which at times could be stressful.

“Some posters only required a couple of rounds of feedback, and others much more,” Gramelspacher said.

“I think it’s a common problem for graphic designers and illustrators that oftentimes clients just don’t realize how much work goes into some of the stuff we do,” Michaelson explained. “The client may think that the ‘small’ change they’ve suggested will just take a couple of minutes, when in reality it could take hours.”

Valuable lessons in collaboration

Gramelspacher and Michaelson gained practical experience in communication and collaboration that they will take with them going forward.

For Michaelson, learning more about effective communication techniques was a bonus.

“We did most of our communication over email,” she said. “I think a lot of problems and confusion could have been avoided if we had held more Zoom meetings or even tried to meet face-to-face.”

Gramelspacher noted the benefits of collaboration, both with her project partner, Michaelson, and her clients.

“I collaborated with another great designer to match style and create cohesive designs, as well as with multiple clients to satisfy the way they would like their department to be represented,” she said.

Bewley expressed admiration for the pair’s professional approach throughout the process, adding that working with them was an “absolute delight.”

“With branding guidelines to follow and each design going through my approval, they handled everything with grace and professionalism,” he said. “Their attention to detail, along with their willingness to adapt and pivot, speaks to their passion and drive to create something both beautiful and unique.”

Pride in finished product

With this experience under their belts, Gramelspacher and Michaelson feel prepared for the future.

“This experience was a great introduction to my future work and career in the field of graphic design,” Gramelspacher said. “I’m very satisfied with our finished product.”

Michaelson held similar views.

“I definitely think this has been a huge learning experience for both of us,” she said. “This was my first big client-facing project, so there are a lot of things I’m going to take away from this to use in the future.”

Michaelson expressed a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment upon completing the project.

“I really love how this project turned out,” she said. “I’m sure there are still areas that could be improved, and there are probably posters that either of us could have done better. But that’s always going to be the case with any design project. It has to be finished at some point.”

“At the end of the day, we accomplished something amazing. I’m so proud of us.”