Our Programs
The BrandLab: Classroom
The Brandlab: Connect
The BrandLab Classroom
Twelve classrooms in Minneapolis, St. Paul and the surrounding Metro are planned for the 2011-12 school year. The classrooms that we partner with have a diverse student population, with a majority of students representing a minority population and being eligible for free or reduced lunch.
Schools have successfully implemented The BrandLab curriculum in Marketing, Media Arts, Mass Communications and Product Development classrooms, and collaboration between the school, teacher, and The BrandLab has been the key to this success.
The classes are taught by a school-employed teacher and a BrandLab instructor who is an expert in the marketing, advertising or design industry; the two collaborate over the entire semester. Partnership with schools works in large part due to the hands-on curriculum that can be taught over a full school semester or adapted to fit the needs of the teacher. The curriculum was developed by professionals working in the industry and encourages problem-solving and creative thinking that can translate to career skills in many fields later on.
Industry volunteers are appreciated and welcome in all our classes. Our students tour various agencies, present their projects to an industry panel, and interview for internships and scholarships with help from volunteers. For more information on volunteer, email osingleton@thebrandlab.org
Students learn to create media with a purpose and a message. They complete market research, strategically plan their business approach and ultimately work within a brand’s identity to create creative work that identifies with consumers.
Through a focused creative process, students are also developing work-readiness skills and are given opportunities to think about how their natural talents can apply to their future careers. For many BrandLab students, their participation in the class is the first time they have allowed themselves to dream big about where their career could take them.
Students who complete The BrandLab program will:
- Have an understanding of how brands leverage communications to fulfill a business need.
- Understand and experience the entire creative process used in business, including strategy, ideation and production.
- Critically evaluate and create communications that meet strategic goals, emphasize target audience, deliver on a key message and maintain business ethics for diverse markets.
- Gain exposure to the many career possibilities and professionals within the marketing industry.
- Be given access to scholarships toward further education or the intern, job shadow or mentor program.
“I really liked making a website as part of our final project.”
— Jamie, Student