I began by working closely with the organization's leadership team to understand the history and application of their existing branding. Through collaborative sessions, I reviewed their brand collateral and gained deep insight into their target audiences—exploring who we were trying to reach, where they were, how to connect with them, and why the rebrand mattered for their mission.

With a clear understanding of the organization's needs, we moved into messaging development—a cornerstone of any strong brand identity. Together, we crafted language that would resonate across Heart of LA's diverse audiences. We also developed both internal and external brand rollout strategies to ensure seamless implementation among staff and maximize brand visibility and awareness with families, donors, and community partners.

I take a collaborative approach to brand development, recognizing that translating strategy into visual elements requires close partnership. I worked with the team to understand what they valued about their existing brand and what they hoped to evolve—discussing color palettes, typography, and visual asset needs. We considered how the brand would be applied across multiple mediums to ensure we built a comprehensive, flexible brand kit for implementation.
The logo development process involved multiple iterations, beginning with mood boards to establish visual direction and progressing through logo variations. This iterative approach ensured we arrived at a design that resonated with staff while appealing to parents, students, donors, and other core audiences.

Once the brand was finalized, we began the web development process. I conducted a thorough audit of their existing Squarespace site and provided recommendations to improve user experience. A critical decision was migrating the site from Squarespace to WordPress—giving the organization a more robust platform that could scale with their needs.
We also fundamentally shifted the website's purpose. Previously, the site served primarily as a donor communication tool. We transformed it into a resource for multiple audiences, building in functionality for future student intake processes while maintaining donor engagement capabilities.
I collaborated with each core program team, conducting staff interviews to update messaging and ensure that program details, requirements, and application processes were communicated clearly and consistently across the site.