DPSS Poster Series
Winter 2022
Poster Design
Graphic Design
Brand Consulting
Six 24x36” posters designed
to provide relevant and intimate messaging for the Department of Safety and Security at the University of Michigan.
For my Winter 2022 Poster Design class, I worked with the Department of Public Safety and Security at the University of Michigan to design a series of 6 posters intended to be utilized on campus to convey their brand messaging and make students aware of their presence and support. Over the course of the semester, I had multiple conversations with DPSS to better understand their services, tone of voice and brand, and relevant messaging, along with class critiques and digital and physical iterations.
Final Posters
1. LOVE IS…
subject : relationship violence and domestic abuse
The intention behind this poster was to create messaging around the subject of relationship and domestic violence, but to prioritize positive language and a positive and embracing tone-of-voice to provide a light of hope in such a dark topic. One of the most important parts of the process with this poster was engaging with students and peers and guiding productive conversations around what love looks like to them and what denotes positive love to them. I utilized their responses, in their own handwriting, and primary, inviting colors to create this simple but powerful result.
2. KNOW YOUR LIMIT
subject : alcohol safety
Another very common issue DPSS deals with on campus is alcohol abuse and intoxication. Knowing that drinking will occur naturally on any college campus, I wanted to create messaging that urges the importance of safe drinking and knowing one’s limits. I also found it important to make students aware that DPSS provides care for students regardless of their age and legality, and that the priority is on health and wellbeing rather than legal reprimands in the cases of alcohol use.
3. LOCK IT UP!
subject : bike theft reminders and tips
One of the most common forms of crime on UM’s Ann Arbor campus is bike theft, often a result of students using cheap cable locks that can easily be cut through. DPSS expressed a strong desire and need to create messaging for students on how to prevent this common crime. I utilized language from their website as the background that captures easy steps on how to prevent this from happening. I overlayed basic but impactful imagery and text to capture the attention of passersby and convey the message within a second’s glance.
4. EMPOWERMENT
subject : self-defense class advertising
One of the most underutilized services provided by DPSS on UM’s campus is their free self-defense empowerment workshop. They stressed a strong urge to create better messaging around this service that brings more attention and invites more students to engage with this program. I created this poster as a response to this need, utilizing bold and contrasting colors and simple illustrative imagery to capture the quick sentiment while also informing students of this service and how to get involved.
5. THE MEANING OF SAFETY
subject : different forms of safety
With this poster, I set out to create messaging around the topic of safety and quickly realized how many different forms of safety exist — emotional, social, physical, pyschological — and realized that ultimately safety looks different for everyone. I realized that at this young and vulnerable age, perhaps the best thing I could do for students is to invite them to recognize the diversity of safety and to ask them to consider what defines safety for themselves on a personal level. I went around campus asking students to write the word safety on a piece of paper and utilized their different forms of the word to capture the energized, ever-changing nature of this large concept.
6. WE’RE HERE
subject : introduction to DPSS
This poster was created as a general introduction to DPSS’s presence and services on campus. I intended for this to be simple and clear — simply communicating with students that DPSS is a service for them and intended to help them rather than hurt them. I used simple and communicative imagery and text to convey this idea.
