- Date published
Real clients and students create excellence together.
Good design starts with a good understanding of the problem.
For students in Missouri State University’s Brick City Design Studio, that means going beyond the design brief to work with real clients, real audiences and real communication challenges.
When efactory initially partnered with Missouri State’s Art + Design department to develop the studio, we saw a win-win: our members could access professional design services they might not otherwise be able to afford, while students gained real-world experience and paid opportunities. A grant from Missouri Technology Corporation made that possible.
JAG Missouri, a resource partner of Missouri State University’s efactory, was a natural fit. Through its efactory membership, the organization connected with Brick City Design Studio to find new ways to communicate its mission and impact across the state.
Based at efactory’s Brick City location, the studio has partnered with JAG Missouri across multiple semesters, giving students the opportunity to put their skills to work on projects that matter.
Starting with the “why”
For JAG Missouri Executive Director Shantra Tucker, the partnership offered more than an opportunity to get professionally designed materials.
“As JAG Missouri has grown, we have recognized the need to strengthen how we communicate who we are, what we do, and the impact we are having on students across Missouri,” Tucker said. “We wanted materials that would represent JAG Missouri professionally while also connecting with the students, schools, employers, legislators and communities we serve.”
That meant the students needed to understand JAG Missouri before they could begin designing for it.
Faculty member Justin Wagler, who is leading Brick City Design Studio this semester, puts that kind of discovery at the center of the student experience. Students learn about JAG Missouri’s mission, ask questions and consider the organization from multiple perspectives — including its staff, students and the broader community.
The result is a process that looks much more like professional client work than a typical classroom assignment.
“We started by helping the students understand JAG Missouri — our mission, our students, our growth, and the different audiences we need to reach,” Tucker said. “From there, the students developed concepts and ideas based on that information.”
A partnership, not a handoff
The work between JAG Missouri and Brick City Design Studio has included social media graphics, printed materials and digital presentation templates. Each semester brings a new group of student designers and new projects, but the work builds on what came before.
Wagler and Tucker establish a manageable scope, then Wagler introduces each new team to the visual foundation developed by previous students. From there, students work directly with JAG Missouri to understand the purpose behind each project.
That continuity has helped JAG Missouri develop a growing collection of materials that feels cohesive while still leaving room for new ideas.
“My time working with Shantra and JAG has been relatively short, but I’ve been fortunate to build on a strong foundation,” Wagler said. “Previous studio art directors Maria Gerasimchuk-Djordjevic and James Mulvenan helped refresh JAG’s visual identity and establish a flexible design system that new student teams could carry forward each semester.”
For students, that means they aren’t starting from scratch, and they aren’t simply following a template, either. They’re learning how to work within an established brand while contributing something new.
“Each semester brings a new team of designers and fresh projects,” Wagler said. “It’s rewarding to see each new team bring fresh ideas while contributing to a cohesive body of work.”
The client is part of the classroom
That real-world relationship is what makes the experience especially valuable for students. They have to ask questions. Take direction. Explain their thinking. Respond to feedback. Revise their work. Meet deadlines. And, ultimately, create something that works for someone beyond the classroom.
At the same time, JAG Missouri gets something that can be difficult to find in day-to-day organizational work: a fresh perspective.
“Sometimes an outside perspective helps you see your story and your message differently,” Tucker said.
That exchange is at the heart of the partnership.
Wagler encourages students to look beyond aesthetics and continually ask whether a piece of communication is doing its job: Is the information clear? Does it work for the intended audience? Does it feel like JAG Missouri?
Those questions help students understand that professional design isn’t simply about making something look good. It’s about solving a communication problem for a specific audience.
Investing in students — and the work
“We have really enjoyed working with the Missouri State students and appreciate the opportunity to partner with them,” Tucker said.
She sees the collaboration as an opportunity to meet an organizational need while giving students meaningful experience with a real client and a real audience.
That combination is exactly what makes the Brick City Design Studio model work.
“The students had the opportunity to work through an actual client relationship — asking questions, listening to feedback, developing ideas, making revisions, and working toward a finished product,” Tucker said.
“I’m proud of our student designers for continuing that tradition of quality design, for JAG, through Brick City Design Studio,” he said. “Kudos to Maria and James for setting the bar!”
The partnership between JAG Missouri and Brick City Design Studio is one example of what can happen when education, community organizations and the right connections come together. Students gain experience that can’t be replicated through a hypothetical assignment. Organizations gain creative talent and a new perspective.
And both leave with something useful: work that has a purpose beyond the classroom.