Culver Academies was founded as a military academy for boys in 1894, and has flourished throughout the years to add a girls’ academy, as well as summer schools and camps. The school has long been known for its unique approach to secondary education, which focuses on forging character and leadership qualities. The Culver experience is structured to offer students a host of opportunities that help them develop as whole people, equipped with the values, discipline, and direction to contribute to society.
Leaders in the making.
Culver’s leaders reached out to Ologie because they wanted to tell the school’s story in a bold, new way. The updated enrollment materials needed to reflect not only the unique experience that students and their families have at Culver, but also the indelible impact and profound benefits of this experience.
However, in a crowded marketplace where many institutions are reading from the same “leadership and character” script, Culver needed to clearly delineate its own distinct educational approach, which is defined by structure. Rather than feeling constrictive, this structure gives students the space to concentrate on the meaningful pursuits and purposeful values that will guide them throughout their lives.
The story that took shape zeroed in on the advantages of this educational framework. Through service and lived experiences, Culver students discover who they are and define their own place in the world. It’s a process that creates exceptional leaders, driven from within to help others. And it’s rooted in time-tested traditions that cultivate the kind of thoughtful and conscientious citizens the world needs most.
This personal evolution became the idea at the core of the story, summed up by the phrase “Culver in the Making.” This message inspires families to imagine who their student might become as the result of a Culver education.
To bring the story to life, we developed visuals that humanize the process, putting students at the forefront, showcasing the experience with evocative photography, and grounding it all with classic design elements and typography. And we leaned into language that highlights Culver’s principles: the values and virtues that form the foundation of ethical leadership, empowering students to find balance, make informed decisions, and do what’s right.
