Creative Services Director/ Lead Graphic Designer

University School of Milwaukee

University School of Milwaukee is an independent, coeducational, college-preparatory day school that educates students in prekindergarten (ages 3 & 4) through 12th grade.

https://www.usm.org/about/employment


Position Details

Creative Services Director/ Lead Graphic Designer
Job
Full-time
5/26/2022
Southeast Wisconsin
Milwaukee, WI

The Creative Services Director/Lead Graphic Designer supports Marketing and Communications office efforts to promote awareness and understanding of University School of Milwaukee and all that it has to offer. Specifically, the position helps drive interest from new families looking to enroll their children at the school, and also from the entire school community for gifts of time, talent, and treasure.

This individual will design and produce the majority of the school’s marketing and communications needs while also setting direction for and managing the school’s visual identity and brand elements in those and other outreach efforts. Reporting to the Director of Marketing and Communications, the Creative Services Director supervises and manages the office’s Visual Media Specialist role, providing video and photography support on an as-needed basis.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

  • Manages and continually refines the University School of Milwaukee brand and its various sub-brands, including their visual identities, collaborating with team members to advance the school’s mission while adhering to visual identity and branding styles and guidelines to help maintain and grow awareness and recognition in the community. 
  • Translates marketing objectives into creative strategies that help meet the stated goals of the Marketing and Communications office and other offices. 
  • Serves as the designer of USM Today, the school’s magazine, published twice per year, working with the school’s magazine editor in the planning process for each issue and handling the majority of the magazines design and layout needs. 
  • Conceptualizes and designs print collateral and advertising materials, digital advertising, and website and social media visuals for various campus initiatives, such as school-year and summer programs enrollment, arts, athletics, fundraising, and other marketing and communications needs. 
  • Coordinates all pre-press and production processes for print collateral and direct mail initiatives with printing company representatives, including the solicitation of quotes as needed. 
  • Manages the school’s graphics needs related to various types of signage and environmental graphics and projects. 
  • Directs other agency and freelance graphic design and illustration needs as appropriate. 
  • Maintains an annual calendar of media and design projects in the office’s project management software and manages projects and specific tasks to ensure effective, on-time delivery. 
  • Supervises and manages the Visual Media Specialist role, which produces, films, and edits video footage and takes still photography in classrooms and at various school events for a wide variety of marketing and communications applications, and provides direct support in these areas, as well as with the storyboarding and scripting processes, on an as-needed basis. 
  • Stays on top of the latest trends and approaches in design through various professional development opportunities. 
  • Serves as a liaison with the school store, athletic department, booster club, and other areas in support of specific brand-driven needs including apparel and merchandise
  • Serves as an internal consultant and collaborative partner with faculty and staff
  • Serves as a liaison with a specific school division, including regular attendance at division meetings for information gathering and sharing purposes. 
  • Other duties as assigned. 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • Demonstrated graphic design and layout skills 
  • Excellent communication skills and strong interpersonal skills with a desire to work with teams 
  • Passion for creating visually appealing and impactful storytelling assets as part of a team 
  • Creative thinker and storyteller with the ability to generate new ideas, troubleshoot issues, and problem-solve as needed 
  • Proficiency in artistic but also technical aspects of videography and photography, including cinematography, lighting, and audio production 
  • Strong digital editing and retouching skills 
  • Proficiency in technical aspects of videography and photography, including equipment use, lighting, composition, exposure, video and audio production, workflow, etc. 
  • Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite/Creative Cloud programs, including Premiere Pro, After Effects, InDesign, Photoshop, Lightroom, and Illustrator 
  • Basic understanding of prepress process and experience working with print vendors 
  • Excellent organizational skills with a strong degree of self- direction and motivation and attention to detail Ability to work collaboratively with others and maintain positive professional relationships 
  • Ability to be flexible and handle multiple projects 
  • High level of maturity, confidentiality, and assertiveness 
  • Capable of competently operating technology and staying ahead of technological advances and trends, incorporating them into internal client work when appropriate
  •  Occasional work outside of traditional work hours may be required to cover school events.

Salary range from $65-70K, plus attractive benefits package.



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