Project: SCAD Studio Challenge
Industry-Academic Partnership with a Sustainable Focus
The Studio Challenge is a cross-disciplinary design competition inviting SCAD students to create original artwork from upcycled manufacturing scrap sourced from Prysmian’s North American facilities. The initiative merges creativity and sustainability, emphasizing environmental responsibility through industrial reuse.
Challenge:
Position Prysmian Group as an industry thought leader while promoting its growing global focus on sustainability. The goal was to increase visibility for the brand’s environmental commitments in a way that felt authentic, engaging, and meaningful—particularly to younger audiences and future innovators. While the SCAD Studio Challenge had been running for several years, it lacked strategic visibility, consistent messaging, and fully integrated communications support.
Solution:
I led the transformation of the SCAD Studio Challenge into a high-impact brand and sustainability initiative by:
Program Leadership & Strategic Development: Directed the structure, renewal, and long-term vision of the program, including scholarship negotiations and institutional approvals with SCAD leadership.
Creative & Operational Oversight: Worked cross-functionally with SCAD to develop the annual brief and challenge objectives; managed logistics, materials, and timelines to ensure smooth execution.
Brand Visibility & Messaging: Created and distributed press releases, authored web stories, and launched social media campaigns—bringing unprecedented visibility to the program and amplifying Prysmian’s sustainability message.
Event Engagement & Thought Leadership: Represented the company at all major touchpoints, including the launch event, judging sessions, final award ceremony, and a curated reception—strengthening relationships and brand presence.
Judging & Recognition: Served on the final jury panel alongside SCAD faculty and external experts to select winning artwork that aligned with both artistic merit and brand values.
Visual Storytelling Through Art: Oversaw delivery and installation of winning artwork across North American facilities—embedding the program’s message into the fabric of the company.
Impact:
The program not only enhanced Prysmian’s reputation as a sustainability-focused brand but also forged meaningful connections with the next generation of creatives. The expanded communications and visual documentation efforts helped elevate the initiative’s prestige for both SCAD and Prysmian—turning a quiet partnership into a celebrated case study in corporate-community collaboration.
What People Are Saying
“The Prysmian challenge offers a dynamic learning environment for students to not only work with unusual yet practical materials, but also for students to experience working with a generous, creative client.”
— Susan Hopp, Professor of Foundation Studies, SCAD
“The Prysmian challenge provided a valuable opportunity to collaborate with other creatives on developing an art piece from scratch. It simulated a real-life situation where you have to create with and for a specific company in mind.”
— Abby Bible, Fashion Marketing & Management Student, SCAD
“Each year, I look forward to seeing the projects created by talented SCAD students. We encourage our employees to think outside of the box and maximize the resources available to them, so the works created from these students will continue to serve as inspiration to Prysmian Group team members and visitors.”
— Hakan Ozmen, CEO, Prysmian Group North America
“As a group of women, we wanted femininity to be at the core of our design. We also wanted to achieve what we felt was the overarching theme of the challenge: connectivity. The final result was this feminine, woven fashion piece made of materials that represent literal connectivity, as well as Prysmian Group’s global products and mission.”
— Katherine Rosser, Sequential Art Major, SCAD
