The Campaign for Occidental College
Oxy’s commitment to equity inspired a campaign that communicates the enduring value of democratic ideals.
A commitment to the tenets of democracy.
Occidental College launched a $225 million comprehensive campaign designed to do more than keep the lights on — it set out to transform the accessibility of Oxy’s education by endowing new student scholarships. Oxy deepened the impact of the Barack Obama Scholars Program, a scholarship focused on the empowerment of first-generation students, veterans, and community college transfers. This lasting commitment to equity in education inspired DISTINC_ to name the campaign in a way that communicates the enduring value of democratic ideals — from the classroom to the community and beyond. For good.
Ensuring access for a diverse student body.
For a liberal arts college woven into the fabric of Northeast LA, ensuring access for a diverse student body wasn’t just important, it was existential. And the only path Occidental College saw toward maintaining and increasing that access was to grow their endowment. Additionally, heated competition for quality faculty remained and the need for key campus upgrades persisted. How could the college unite multiple initiatives into one cohesive case, while leveraging some of the most prominent Oxy voices to stand out in a city bursting with philanthropic need?
Bold.
We helped Oxy name its campaign For Good, a theme that deftly underscores their twin commitments: to equitable access and to lasting sustainability. Led by the establishment of the Barack Obama Scholars Program—the 44th President attended Oxy as an undergrad—the college unveiled For Good with a goal of $225 million. The campaign asserted a bold belief: that the strengthening of our democratic society hinges on the pursuit of truth and liberal arts education can be a conduit to lasting change, for good.
Success.
Thanks to more than 15,000 contributions from alumni, parents, staff, faculty, students, foundations and friends of the College, OXY blew past their initial $225M goal and raised $252,795,182 across four initiatives. That included more than $150 million committed to the College’s endowment, which will provide access to the Occidental experience for generations to come; seven new endowed professorships and department chairs, including in the recently established departments of Black Studies (2018) and Computer Science (2017); and new immersive student experiences, including the Barack Obama Scholars Program, the Humanities for Just Communities initiative, and the Immigration and Social Justice summer internship.
“Our partnership with DISTINC_ was creative and strategic, and ultimately helped us land on a Campaign theme which galvanized a community. Through inspiring visuals and language, together we launched The Oxy Campaign For Good and raised significant funds for generations of talented students. I am incredibly proud of the work.”
—Michelle McMichael, Director of Campaign Communications at oxy
Services
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An immersive study investigates quantitative data and qualitative evidence from a variety of stakeholder groups. This audit helps identify how far your organization has come as well as understand what may stand in the way of progress.
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Ideation workshops offer a variety of hands-on exercises tailored to your organization’s unique situation. The group experience is strategically designed to test readiness for change and to help envision how quickly your organization can pivot.
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A strategy for change is not always easy to deploy as it often challenges old habits. Brand evolution permeates throughout your entire organization and we work together as a team to cultivate opportunities as well as navigate challenges.
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Your brand identity is much more than the sum of a logo, a set of typefaces, and hex codes pleasing to the eye. It can be a living, breathing, flexible system that is both open enough to communicate across your varied audiences and focused enough to cultivate a united brand experience, full of intent.
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Every organization has a voice. And every brand voice has a purpose: to distill your collective personality and ethos into a coherent expression that is accessible across many audiences.
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Transformational ideas move organizations forward. When the moment calls for a capital campaign to realize such an idea, the biggest challenge is articulating campaign goals via a unified story. We name, theme, and design campaign identities to help you tell that story in the most compelling way possible.
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Compelling brands can only go so far without a proper deployment plan to put them to market. We architect strategic communication roadmaps across social, digital, print, experiential that achieve measurable results.