Learn with Pride launches at GCU
Two students are at the heart of a new university campaign celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community at GCU.
Learn with Pride aims to promote visibility, understanding and inclusion across campus and is encouraging allyship to ensure that every student and member of staff feels at home throughout their time at GCU.
The campaign launches this week with flagpole displays, on-campus events, and promotional activity across social media.
Louise Mooney and Donald Lapsley, who both studied BSc (Hons) Digital Design at GCU, created the campaign through their final-year Design for Change module. They worked closely with staff and students throughout the campaign to ensure Learn with Pride represented the GCU community.
We sat down with Louise and Donald to find out more:
What were you tasked with creating through the Design for Change module?
Donald: “We all got split into groups and were given different briefs related to the university – they were all real problems that needed solved. Ours was focused on LGBTQIA+ and we really wanted to focus on putting the message across in our own way.”
Louise: “We were given a brief which basically told us the LGBTQIA+ community within GCU were under-represented. We had to create a variety of different assets after doing a bit of research around what appeals to the LGBTQIA+ community.
“There was a big accessibility factor as well around international students, who might come from countries that have a different outlook on sexuality as to what we have here. Learn with Pridehas involved a lot of meetings with students to gather feedback, so that really allowed us to develop that overall picture around the importance of belonging.”
You mentioned the importance of belonging, how did you try and get that across throughout the campaign?
Donald: “In our promotional materials we simply used people that you would see in real-life around campus. It’s all about showing that being different is normal – we don’t need to shy away from it.
“We also wanted to make sure the colours were really bold and popped so that we could get across that message of being proud of who you are. There’s a lot of minimalistic design work out there, so we wanted to do something a bit more eye-catching.”
Louise: “We actually also got a bit of feedback telling us that it shouldn’t just be focused on students. We have a whole community here which includes academics and other staff members – we wanted to include individuals in the campaign who represented them as well.”
Tell me about the actual designs you created?
Donald: “It’s actually a punk aesthetic, which was inspired by Pride marches from the past – we really wanted to tie it into the history of Pride. It’s very reminiscent of the flyers you would get back in the day, but we’ve also added a modern take.”
Louise: “It’s more of a collage style where we have rough textures. For example, with the flags instead of having them standing on their own we’ve coordinated it so that it’s colours of the rainbow. One flag will be orange, one will be red and it will then continue like that – it really works well together.”
Are you looking forward to seeing the campaign launch across campus?
Louise: “I’m really excited. When you’re a student you make projects and don’t really expect them to go anywhere because you’re in university. This has actually got to the point where it’s being used, so seeing it up around campus will be amazing.”
Donald: “It’s the biggest thing we’ve both done since graduating. It’ll be the first time we’ve both had work on display for a massive audience. The thing we’re excited for most is just seeing the reaction of people – we’ve been looking at it for a long time, so it’ll be nice for others to see our work.”
How has being involved in Learn with Pride benefitted you at this point in your career?
Louise: “Well, it will definitely be getting used in my portfolio! It’s a funny feeling because we’re so used to making designs and don’t actually see them through to the point where they’re made, so this has been hugely beneficial. It’s a topic that really resonates with both of us, and I think it’s important to have that passion.”
Donald: “I also think it’s a great chance for us to get feedback that’s not from lecturers. Whether it’s negative or positive, we’ve never really had input from someone who doesn’t actually know us. It’s a learning curve for us, and it’ll be good to look back on.
“It’s also very important now, more than ever, to represent the LGBTQIA+ community.”
You can find out more about the GCU Learn with Pride campaign here