Village of Wisdom was creating new ways to address systemic racial inequality in schools—centering and amplifying the voices of Black parents as the key to changing how educators engaged with Black and Brown children in schools in Durham and beyond. But with a team made up of largely academics and researchers, their communications were often unclear, inconsistent, and unsophisticated from a design perspective. To add to the complication, they’d created a sub-brand called Black Genius, which was ever-present in their messaging, but was often confused for the name of the organization itself. Village of Wisdom tapped Studio Tomo because they felt we had the requisite understanding of the educational nonprofit world, deep experience in creating brands for organizations committed to justice and equity, and most critically, the lived experience needed to craft a brand that felt reflective of the staff, parents, and communities they served.

At the heart of the rebrand was a simple affirmation, “We are genius,” which manifested in a logo represented by a braid—a symbol and act rooted in culture and history, a symbol of intergenerational wisdom and care—part art, part science, beautiful, and unapologetic. The braid—rich in meaning—served as a flexible graphic element, able to serve as a frame, highlight, pattern, texture, and decorative element.

The Studio Tomo team then brought the new branding to life through a redesigned website, hero video, and social videos to anchor the brand launch. In addition, Village of Wisdom called on the studio to support its paid media, social media, and public relations efforts in an interim capacity as it built up its own internal communications function and capabilities.