The WLC has launched its new website and logo, designed by First Ascent Design. (Photo via Unsplash)
The Wilmington Learning Collaborative has a new look.
“Much like when you meet a stranger for the first time, you don’t have associations with their face, and as you start experiencing that person, you gain those associations over time, so the WLC has just launched its new face,” said John Himics, president of First Ascent Design.
The collaborative’s governing board held its last monthly meeting of the 2023-2024 academic year Tuesday night, and the group expressed its excitement for its new comprehensive website, designed by Himics and First Ascent.
Laura Burgos, executive director of the WLC, said the team and community have “eagerly anticipated” the website, which contains the organization’s new logo and look.
New WLC logo
Created in November 2022, the Wilmington Learning Collaborative is a state agency, with millions of dollars in funding, aiming to improve the educational and societal outcomes for children in nine city elementary schools across Brandywine, Red Clay Consolidated and Christina school districts.
It just wrapped up its extended planning year, which included assessments of all schools, evaluating elements like academic performance, school climate, student and teacher needs and more.
Other recent actions include setting metrics of success to ensure any new policies or programming works, contracting a reading specialist group Reading Assist and contracting a trauma-informed social service group Children & Families First.
RELATED: WLC sets metrics of success; hires reading, trauma groups
The collaborative now looks to begin implementing programs with the $16 million in state funding it has.
One example is It’s “The Chill Project,” which was developed in Pittsburgh schools and claims to “use mindfulness-based exercises to equip students, teachers and parents with a common language and universal skills to identify, discuss and react positively to stress.”
It will debut in two schools next year: the Bayard School and Pritchett Academy (formerly known as the Bancroft School).
“You’ll notice that there’s a trademark after our logo, which indicates that our application is in process with the United States Patent and Trademark fund to protect our branding,” Burgos said. “It feels good to finally have a recognizable visual brand.”
In addition to the fresh aesthetics, the website contains the following:
- Background on the WLC
- Profiles of every member in the collaborative
- Profiles on each of the nine schools, including school colors, mascot, administration, enrollment, grades served, racial and ethnic makeup, school calendars, school website and social media sites
- Resources for families including contact information for organizations dealing with food insecurity, housing insecurity, housing emergencies, affordable housing, financial assistance and clothing insecurity
- Resources for students including contact information for groups dealing with academic success, youth leadership, summer programs and college access.
- WLC press releases
- Meeting information such as meeting documents and agendas, schedule, archives of past meetings and reports
- Contact information
- Sign-up form for WLC’s mailing lists
- Social media links for the collaborative
The website, which has been hinted at for almost a year now, is part of the effort to make sure parents and school communities are engaged, informed and to ensure the transparency of the collaborative.
Himics said school principals, the WLC members and even students were involved in the design process.
“A logo is a vessel,” he said. “I don’t give it power, you guys do, and I’m excited to see how you fill that vessel over the next few years.”
Check out the new website here.
Raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jarek earned a B.A. in journalism and a B.A. in political science from Temple University in 2021. After running CNN’s Michael Smerconish’s YouTube channel, Jarek became a reporter for the Bucks County Herald before joining Delaware LIVE News.
Jarek can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at (215) 450-9982. Follow him on Twitter @jarekrutz
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