Case Studies

The Peace Corps

Project Leadership, Communications Strategy, and Creative Direction

In five years as the Peace Corps' account director and senior strategist—while I served on the staff of Threespot, a DC-based digital agency—I led a number of high-profile initiatives:

• A three-year digital communications strategy for the agency
• A Webby-nominated website redesign that doubled the number of online applications
• A Webby-winning site for teens interested in Peace Corps service
• A robust educational site for the Peace Corps' World Wise Schools program
• Campaign mini-sites that successfully targeted recruits in specific demographic groups
• A thoroughly-overhauled organizational intranet
• An online toolkit to streamline the application process for potential volunteers

The National Wildlife Federation

Content Development

As a Threespot strategist and content developer, I produced a short film in support of NWF's annual fundraising efforts. "What Does a Polar Bear Sound Like?"—a no-frills, person-on-the-street video—was intended to make the threats facing polar bears due to climate change more familiar for a wide, general-public audience. (This is a cause that's close to my heart; watch closely and you'll see me roar for all I'm worth.) The video served as one component of NWF's annual multi-channel fundraising strategy. There's nothing like a story, after all, to motivate support.

The Council on Foreign Relations

Content Development and Creative Direction

In support of the organization's efforts to to begin leveraging its scholarly content to engage a broader audience, I led a small Threespot team in the design of two high-profile infographics. The first—The Road to Nowhere—was originally published in Time magazine. It depicted the United States' languishing transportation infrastructure. The second—Remedial Education—made its original appearance in the New York Times. It illustrated the challenges facing the United States' effort to regain its standing, educationally, among other developed countries. On publication, they both earned large-scale national attention... and helped convene broad public conversations about the issues they engaged with.

The Chronicle of Higher Education

Project Leadership

As account director for the Threespot team that supported the Chronicle of Higher Education, I oversaw the design and development of the College Reality Check, a first-and best-of-its-kind application that will fundamentally change the ways in which students, parents, and high school guidance counselors make college selection decisions. Instead of choosing among schools that rank highly for any number of highly subjective criteria, users can now assess their choices by examining factors that actually matter—like four-year graduation rates, for example, or expected debt upon graduation. The result: informed consumers making smart decisions. A real reality check for everyone involved.