Children Striving Together

Serving Los Angeles and Orange Counties since 2011, Children Striving Together has a strong reputation for supporting youth and their families with positive outlets. They had been doing good work in Compton for years, but their brand desperately needed an evolution. They were looking for a fresh take on their program to help propel their nonprofit into the next phase of development and growth.

Keeping their logo intact, we developed the Children Striving Together style around their sassy logo and bold color palette, reflecting the brazen spirit and bright futures of the students they serve. This incomparable organization deserved a unique, unapologetic brand style that felt true to their generous heart, dedication to mentorship, and love for the at-promise youth they serve. 

The modern style is underscored by the uncompromising reverse-serif Gopher font family and the hard-working duo of Work Sans and Roboto Mono. 

Children Striving Together is dedicated to serving youth of all ages and walks of life, so we wanted the design to be gender-neutral, appealing to youth between the ages of 9-14. The brand also had to have enough variety in style to skew to Juniors and Seniors in high school, if needed. 

CST primarily serves parents, educators, and kids — so getting the important points across in an engaging, youthful way became key. To make this happen, we wanted to avoid sounding stuffy or overly educational. Instead, the CST voice would feel friendly, fun and relational – without coming across as cheesy. After all, the end goal was not just to have folks clicking through the site, but to have them sincerely interacting with the content in a way that drives participation and involvement.

Additionally, word choice played a large part in the copy and its contribution to the essence of CST’s voice and mission. Traditionally, the core demographic served has been referred to as “at-risk” youth. Working closely with the client, it became apparent that  alternative phrasing would echo the vision of the CST community more effectively.  Reflecting unique value and tone, word choice was something we were mindful of throughout the process.

The new ChildrenStrivingTogether.org is built to make the registration process for students and families as seamless as possible. We cleaned up the sitemap, consolidated pages where necessary, and kept each page as straightforward and interactive as possible. CST had a great archive of event photography, so we wanted those stories (and fun!) to speak the loudest. 

Working with Dana Snyder at Positive Equation, Children Striving Together also installed the Fundraise Up platform to make donations even easier to receive.

Children Striving Together’s new visual identity gives them a foundational, timeless style to stand on and visual language to expand on as they continue to grow and serve at-promise youth. They’re proof positive that when a nonprofit dedicates itself to serving one community, it can have even more fun with a bold, unconventional brand style that will attract others who are ready to join forces for good.