It’s All About U was a newsletter and poster project developed in collaboration with Brenda McManus for the Communication Committee of the Graduate Communication Design Program at Pratt Institute.
The project was conceived with a clear intention: to give voice to the students and strengthen a sense of community within the department. Rather than focusing on faculty or alumni—as previous editions had done—the editorial direction centered on the diversity, opinions and shared experiences of the student body, positioning the newsletter as a tool for dialogue rather than promotion.
Rooted in the Communication Committee’s mission to open a dialogue with the student body in order to understand and respond to its needs, the publication was designed as a participatory platform. We developed and distributed student and faculty surveys, refining them to balance open expression with structured, readable outcomes. This process revealed both the cultural diversity of the program—students from more than 25 countries—and the wide spectrum of perspectives shaping life within GradComD.
In parallel, the project incorporated in-depth interviews with influential voices connected to the program. A conversation with Stefan Sagmeister offered an external perspective on design education and professional practice, while an interview with Bob Gill—a foundational figure of the department—brought critical insight into the role of thinking, questioning and authorship in design education.
Visually, the newsletter and poster were conceived to feel direct, inclusive and student-driven, prioritizing clarity, accessibility and editorial rhythm over stylistic excess. The result was not merely a publication, but a collective portrait of a community, shaped by its own voices and concerns.
It’s All About U stands as an exercise in editorial design as social infrastructure, using design not to showcase, but to listen, connect and encourage meaningful exchange.
