Brand & Web Design
Diamond Charter School
Brand, website, and outreach system for a new charter school
Diamond Charter School is a new public charter school that needed to look credible for state reviewers and trustworthy for local families.
I designed the brand system, responsive website, and bilingual marketing materials that were used in the school’s charter submission and community outreach. The work supported $5M in state grant approvals and outreach to more than 20,000 families.
Role
Web & Brand Designer
Team
1 Designer, School Founding Team
Tools
Figma, FigJam, Adobe Illustrator and InDesign, Generative AI (ChatGPT, MidJourney)
Timeline
2023 — 2025
Overview
Establishing trust through design
The founding team came to me with a clear mission but no visual identity, website, or communication materials.
They needed:
A brand that felt professional enough for the New York State Education Department
A friendly, kid-appropriate look for families and students
A website and print materials that worked in both English and Spanish
My goal was to turn their mission into a simple system that could scale. Something staff could keep using on their own after launch.
$5M
in state grant
approvals
20K
families
reached
Brand system
Translating the school’s mission into a visual system
Logo
The logo consists of two trapezoids and two triangles arranged to form an offset diamond, symbolizing thinking outside the box. Each shape represents one of the school’s four pillars, also called the 4 C's.
Red
Citizenship for College and Career Readiness
Yellow
Creativity through Classroom Collaboration
Blue
Critical Thinking for Cognitive Growth
Teal
Cultural Appreciation
The configuration suggests movement and interaction, reflecting active learning and continuous growth. The geometric shapes are simple and easy for children to recognize or draw, making the logo educational as well as memorable.
Typography and Wordmark
I chose Proxima Nova for its clean, readable, and approachable feel.
Works for formal documents and friendly parent-facing materials
Easy to read on small screens and printed flyers
I customized the “M” in “Diamond” so it looks like two figures holding hands. This small detail signals community and support without adding extra icons.
Proxima Nova Regular
Proxima Nova Bold
Together, the logo, colors, and type create a system that can scale across web, print, and signage.
Website
Clarifying mission and enrollment
The responsive website outlined the school’s mission, leadership, and enrollment process with a focus on clarity and bilingual accessibility. Families could reach key pages in two to three clicks, improving usability and transparency during the approval and enrollment phases.
Marketing and collateral
Consistency to establish a presence
I designed flyers, brochures, banners, digital ads, and stationery in both English and Spanish to reach a broader audience. Each piece reused shapes and colors from the logo to create a unified look across every channel. Reusable templates were also created for staff to maintain consistent branding beyond launch.
Outcomes
The brand and website became part of the school’s official charter submission and launch materials. They were used across presentations, packets, and community campaigns.
The visual system and website helped support $5M in state grant approvals and outreach to more than 20,000 families. The team now has reusable templates and a clear framework they can maintain on their own.
What I Learned
This project made it very clear how much design can create trust before anything physically exists. The building was not open yet, but a consistent brand and site helped the school feel real and dependable.
I also had to design for two very different views of the same thing. On one side, state reviewers going through a formal approval process. On the other, parents trying to figure out if this school is right for their kids. Both needed clarity, but in slightly different ways.
The last piece was the importance of systems when there is no designer on staff. The logo and website matter, but the real value here was making something the team could reuse without breaking it.
This fits a pattern in my work. I like taking something undefined and building enough structure around it so other people can use it with confidence.
Thank you for reading!
Please feel free to reach out with any questions or to connect.