The Senesh School

  • Category: Branding +
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“Since its founding in 1995, Senesh has grown to be a thriving center of K-8 Jewish life and learning in the heart of Brooklyn. With this growth came the realization that our messaging and branding were not doing enough to communicate the vibrant and joyful experience that is a Senesh education.”

– Siobhan Balazs, Senesh Director of Marketing & Communications

Learning with joy.

The Senesh School (Senesh) is a K-8 Jewish day school located in Brooklyn, NY. Despite their recent logo refresh, they felt that their branding and messaging were not doing enough to capture attention or embody the school’s growth. While they wanted to remain rooted in their history, they felt ready to position themselves towards the future – which is where we came in.

Before delving into the branding and messaging work, we conducted stakeholder interviews and created user personas. Combining this knowledge with the information we gathered from the Senesh team, we presented several unique logo ideas, including color scheme variations and examples of how the logos would look on different pieces of collateral. 

Through a collaborative, iterative process, we honed in on logos that were modern and fresh while still containing meaning. The logo Senesh chose held three different meanings: stone tablets (referring back to Judaism), two clasped hands (referring to community), and an “S” shape (referring to their name.) We also used the logo process to begin showcasing a simplified version of their name, transitioning from Hannah Senesh Community Day School to The Senesh School. 

As we reworked Senesh’s logo, we were simultaneously crafting new messaging. This started with a messaging map, which allowed us to hone their core messaging and identify the following pillars:

• Learn with Joy.
• Live with Conviction.
• Find your Community.

Once we presented this foundational messaging to key members of the Senesh team, we were able to write the copy for the majority of their new website. 

The final piece we created was a branded email template. Using the vibrant, playful brand system that built upon their new logo, we produced an email template with customized header options that empowered them to cover various topics. 

It’s incredibly exciting to see how far Senesh has come in how they present themselves as a school. We’re so grateful we were able to help them usher in this new era and thrilled to hear they’ve received positive feedback on their new brand.

“Our new branding and messaging has brought who we are to the forefront. Today, wherever you encounter our brand — whether on our website or in our physical space —  the messaging is consistent, clear and energetic.”

Melissa Kushner, Board Chair
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