When I was serving in my role as the Director of Communications & Marketing for a K-12, I always enjoyed the summer season. Being in Arizona, it certainly wasn’t because of the weather. And while I missed the energy of students and faculty on campus every day, I appreciated the fact that me and my team were able to work relatively uninterrupted.

To oversimplify it, during the school year it seemed like we were mostly reactive – reacting to others’ requests and needs and living in the weeds more than we’d like. In the summer, we had the opportunity to balance that out by focusing on higher-level strategies and support school-wide efforts, driving the projects that we wanted to drive.

In this series, we’re going to look at some of those projects we tackled annually each summer to support school wide initiatives.

Campus Signage

Let me preface by saying I’m a sucker for good signage. What an incredible, affordable opportunity to create an intentional environment for your families and guests.

Signage can serve many purposes outside of general branding. Your signage should be more than your school logo. Utilize the space you’re given and design signage to tell stories and inspire – showcasing student activities, alumni, academic achievements – the possibilities are endless. Signage gives you an opportunity for guests on your campus to get a feel for what your school is all about without having to talk to a person.

An often-missed opportunity is to utilize signage to create a more secure campus. Installing perforated window wraps on exterior doors or creating a visual barrier into the interior of the campus are great opportunities to assist with creating security layers while not missing the chance to tell your story.

Focusing on the summer, we found success doing a series of campus walks. Starting with our internal MarCom team, we walked the campus looking for signage that needed replacing due to weathering or damage. We’d also identify existing signage where we wanted to update the design or even new opportunities.

The next walk was with key “area owners”. The fine arts director around that portion of campus, the office administrator when it came to entry-way aesthetics, the athletic director when it came to all of the athletic facilities on campus. We’d walk their areas, take notes and suggestions, and marry them with our vision for the space and the realities of feasibility.

Finally, we’d take everything we wanted to do and walk the campus with facilities staff to ensure that there would be no logistical problems with the signage and make sure there were no surprises when it came time to install or replace signage.

Keep a list of suggestions and ideas either your team or other faculty and staff members had during the school year and revisit the list in the summer. Also, now is the time to proactively reach out to your principals, office managers, anyone who has requirements for signage during the year and update their designs. Get all of your traffic flow, classroom or teacher, and wayfinding signage updated ahead of time and with intentionality.

Here are some items to put on your summer list to evaluate:
• Hallway photos
• Academic Achievement posters
• Parking lot banners
• Stadium banners
• Parking / Pick-up Tags
• Athletic / Arts Facilities Signage
• Classroom / Teacher Names
• Mission & Vision Posters

Don’t pass up the opportunity your campus presents to tell your story and enhance your brand. Take advantage of your space to create an exceptional environment. Sharp designs applied as part of a master plan for your campus signage ensures your story and brand will resonate with your families and anyone who steps on your campus.

Guests are coming – be prepared to tell your story!