John Fontaine Thesis Project

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Project Documentation
Contents

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Discovery Phase
Primary Research
Secondary Research
Understanding the User
Project Proposal

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08
10
13

Building a Brand
Brand Voice
Typography
Logotype
Visual Mark
Color

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17
18
19
21

Application
Information Architecture
Wireframes
Screen Designs
Lasting Impact

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29
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John Fontaine Thesis Project

Discovery Phase
Identifying Opportunities
Throughout my education I was given adequate opportunities to
engage with the arts both during and after school.
I had an art class during school hours in every grade. My elementary
school even offered an extra art enrichment class for gifted students.
I took a half dozen art electives in high-school and was a member of a
student organization called Art Club. I also participated in a creative
problem solving organization called Destination Imagination for my
entire K-12 experience.
For me, creativity is second nature.
It was not until after I graduated, that I realized this level of exposure
was atypical. In fact, approximately 54,700 students in Ohios public
schools did not have access to arts instruction in 2010. I decided to
investigate the role art can play in a students life, and evaluate the
resources currently available to creative students.

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Discovery Phase
Primary Research
I began my research by talking to one of my mentors, a high school
art teacher named Mrs. Green. We discussed the importance of art
education and the challenges school art programs currently face.
Intrigued by the possibilities, I did some more digging and found that
enrollment in the arts drops sharply in high school. I predicted that the
pressure to choose a career and a focus on standardized testing were
factors that contributed to this decline.
In order to put my hypothesis to the test, I decided to talk to high
school students about their current situation. I was interested in their
decision making process and any difficulties they had encountered.
By conducting interviews I gained a genuine understanding of this
dilemma.
I have chosen a few quotes that I feel capture the feelings and desires
of my interviewees.

John Fontaine Thesis Project

How are you preparing for graduation?

I have talked to my
parents and my consoler,
but I want to make
discoveries on my own.

I have spent most of

my time searching online,
but It is frustrating trying
to find what I need.

I know what Im good at,

but I wish there was a way
to get paid for doing what
I love to do.

- Mitchell Mahoney

- Grant Gualteri

- Alissa Cook

How did you decide on which university to attend?

I was on the fence, but
once I talked to students
at each university I knew
which one to choose.

I am a social person, so
I knew I wanted to go to a
big university. Ohio State
was the right fit for me.

Most incoming students

I have talked to are
interested in job and
internship placement.

- Matt Mahoney

- Nicole Fontaine

- Gabe Tippery Design Advisor

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Discovery Phase
Secondary Research
The following are a few statistics that support my hypothesis:
According to the No Child Left Behind act art is considered a core
academic subject.
10 % of major urban public schools provided no access to the arts.
Low-income students who are highly engaged in the arts are twice
as likely to graduate college as their peers with no arts education.
72% of business leaders say that creativity is the number one skill they
are seeking when hiring.
Benchmarking
In order to fully understand my problem space I took a look at existing
websites for inspiration. My goal was to uncover the strengths
and weakness of each site. This exercise provided me with useful
techniques and guidelines I used when crafting my solution.

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Linked In

Bigfuture

Behance

This site is the worlds largest

professional network. It is
the webs best resource for
networking. I examined the site
in order to get inspiration on
ways to connect people. I want
to create a creative community
where students feel comfortable
reaching out to professionals in
their fields of interest. Overall it
proved to be a fantastic resource.

This site attempts to tackle

the immense task of providing
career and college advice to all
students. It succeeds in many
ways by providing credible
information and useful tools, but
lacks specificity and visual aids.
Its features and functionality
informed my initial design
directions and helped me narrow
my focus to creative careers.

This site is a beautiful portfolio

sharing site. Its minimal design
allows users to showcase their
work without distraction. The site
is very well organized and uses a
clever filter system to streamline
the navigation. I was inspired by
behance to craft the portfolio
portion of my site. I hope to give
students the opportunity to
share their work with their peers.

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Discovery Phase
Understanding the User
People are at the heart of every good design solution. I utilized a
human-centered approach when conducting my research. I leveraged
what I learned from my interviews to craft two personas that make
up my target audience.
During my research I discovered an under served user group. I found
that there were already several sites that displayed information for
students approaching graduation, but there wasnt a site dedicated
to serving the needs of creative individuals.
I saw the opportunity to use my design skill to provide a solution that
improved the current experience of enrolling in creative major.

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Creative students
All high school students
approaching graduation are
forced to contemplate their
purpose, and decide whether or
not to continue their education.
Creative students often struggle
to find a career path that is right
for them and often become
discouraged. They need a better
way to evaluate their options.
Concerned parents
Having a student who intends on
pursuing a creative career can
be stressful for parents. They
want to ensure they provide
proper guidance to their children.
They face financial decisions
and a plethora of unanswered
questions . An online resource
could provide them peace of
mind when advising their child.

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Discovery Phase
Initial Focus
How students utilize the resources available to them to make
important decisions about their future.
Chosen Problem
Talented high school students lack proper exposure to creative
career opportunities.
Problem Space
The transition from high school into college can be overwhelming for
students. In some cases, lack of motivation prevents students from
realizing their potential, but most of the time access to information
is the problem. Knowledge is power and equipped with the right
information students feel empowered to take action.

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Discovery Phase
Proposed Solution
An interactive online resource that provides students with the tools
they need to make informed decisions about their future.
Objective
To raise awareness of career opportunities in the creative industries
while promoting advancement to higher education.
Deliverables
Interface Designs for a responsive web application.
An exhibition board that illustrates project goals.
A promotional video that clear explain functionality.

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Building a Brand
A brand is more than just a symbol it is a promise.
My brand promises to provide credible information and useful tools to
students who intend on pursuing careers in the creative industries.
It was important to me that my project have a strong brand identity,
so I worked hard to ensure that my brand captured the essence of my
project and that it could be used to communicate my project goals.

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Building a Brand
Brand Voice

Social
Approachable
Inspirational

Credible
Trustworthy
Efficient

Naming
Choosing a brand name is a difficult task. I choose to combine two
words that described my sites functionality to create my brand.
By combining the word enroll with the word portfolio I created a
unique and memorable name.

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Building a Brand
Typography
I choose to use a San serif typeface, because my solution is web based.
I selected Effra because It has unique characters and is highly legible.
Effra Regular

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg
Effra Bold

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg

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Building a Brand
Logotype
I decided to present my brand name in lowercase letters and round the
ascenders to ensure my brand appeared friendly and approachable.
Process

Alterations from the original typeface

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Building a Brand
Visual Mark
In order to create a visual mark that captured the enrolio brand I
utilized the principle of synergy. I combined the representations of
two objects; a light bulb and a fountain pen. The light bulb symbolizes
creativity and innovation, and the fountain pen embodies the process
of crafting ideas by hand.

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Building a Brand
Horizontal Lockup
This is the proper arrangement of the visual mark and logotype.

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Building a Brand
Color
I choose blue as my primary color because it conveys trust. My pallet
in monochromatic, but effectively utilizes various tints and shades of
blue to highlight key information and establish a clear hierarchy.

Light Blue
#12AAEB

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Calm Blue
#275481

Dark Blue
#0D2440

True Black
#000000

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Building a Brand
Mark Variations
The following are appropriate combinations of the brand elements.

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Application
After months of research and ideation it was time to craft the
final deliverables. Being a site for creatives, my primary focus was
the visual language. I also leveraged my knowledge of usability to
ensure the interface was clear, and functional.

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Application
Information Architecture
The site began as an architecture diagram. This allowed me to take
a content inventory and assess core functionality. This diagram also
illustrates content flow and how a user would navigate the site.

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Application
Wireframes
All of my screens began as wireframes. This low fidelity approach
allowed me to easily make revisions and incorporate new ideas.
This process gradually led me to a consistent layout that I could
incorporate into my entire site design.

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Application
Home Page
The landing page of any site is the users first impression. It is
important to clearly convey the purpose of the site using visuals
and text. I also included a call to action that prompts the user to
leverage the sites full functionality by creating an account.

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Application
Iconography
I created icons for my site to streamline the navigation process.
I wanted to using line-work to convey complex ideas in a simple way.

Careers

John Fontaine Thesis Project

Universities

Gallery

Portfolio

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Application
Explore Careers
On this page, students can evaluate their options before making
important life decisions. Users can begin their guided exploration,
by choosing their top three strengths. The site will then display
suitable careers based on their abilities.

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Application
Career Profile
Detailed information is available on each career profile page.
It presents information relevant to decision making, such as job
descriptions and major requirements. Users can discover new
and exciting career paths and they also have the option to save
potential careers to their dashboard for further review.

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Application
Find a University
In this section, students can search the enrolio database for colleges.
To begin their custom search, they simply choose relevant factors and
arrange them in order of importance. Once their priorities have been
established, the site will a list of display universities that meet their
needs. This page displays important information at a glance, allowing
students to make comparisons and quickly evaluate their options. .

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Application
University Profile
More information about each school is available on its corresponding
profile page. Additional program details are also available for each
major offered by a school. With enrolio, students can compare school
statistics, read student reviews, and even chat with current students

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Application
Student Gallery
On this page, students can view, comment on, and be inspired
by original work posted by their peers. This gallery is unique
because it is exclusive to high school students. It is designed to
promote meaningful peer interactions and facilitate collaboration.

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Application
Create a Portfolio
In the creative industries, a persons portfolio is their most important
asset. When presented properly, student work can properly portray
a students abilities. With enrolio, students can easily create interactive
online portfolios free of charge. Once users have completed their
portfolio, they have the option to send it to university recruiters,
and share it with friends.

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Application
Lasting Impact
I was fortune enough to have the unconditional support of my parents,
and the guidance of several mentors, enabling me to follow my dreams.
For my senior project I decided to pay it forward by using my design
skills to create a resource for the next generation of creatives.
Enrolio helps students realize their full potential by encouraging
them to continue their education and pursue their passion. I hope
one day my design will be implemented so the positive influence
I have envisioned will become real.

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