With low income graduation rates just above 50%, there is a crisis in education. The trouble is that most are talking about the problem but not doing much about it. By helping to move under-privileged graduation rates from under 50% to 92%, the Alliance for Choice in Education (ACE Scholarships) is an exception. But the organization was positioning itself as a shield of the Republican right, polarizing support and limiting appeal.

We re-focused the non-profit to be about the kids, not the politics. With a new brand identity based on a cross between school bus orange and #2 pencil yellow combined with a simple name shift to ACE Scholarships (the vernacular of the organization), the approach makes ACE modern and meaningful.

These simple yet profound changes resulted in a campaign that has helped double ACE’s footprint in Colorado from 740 to 1,500 scholarships, drive donations from $3.5MM to $7MM and increase awareness from 5% to 15% – all with a limited, non-profit budget. Building on their momentum, ACE has since expanded to Montana and Louisiana with plans for an even larger footprint moving forward.