At the Mental Health Association Oklahoma, I led the end-to-end design and content strategy for our Annual Reports. These publications served a dual-purpose: philanthropic stewardship and financial transparency.

Objectives & Impact

Donor Stewardship & Recognition: My team and I collaborated closely with the development department to audit and alphabetize donor lists by tier, with the objective to ensure 100% accuracy in name and contribution levels.
Data-Driven Storytelling: I captured raw organizational through cross-departmental collaboration, and then turned the data into compelling narratives that demonstrated the impact of donor dollars.
Fiscal Transparency: I ensured the report functioned as a public accountability tool, making complex income and expense data accessible and clear to both donors and the general public.

Leadership & Creative Direction

In my role as the project lead, I provided the vision for the "look and feel" of each report, brainstorming with designers to create a modern, professional aesthetic. I served as the central hub for data collection, pulling metrics from across the organization and synthesizing them into a cohesive annual narrative.

2019 Annual Report

Creative Resilience in 2020

The Problem: Low-Fidelity Visuals

Traditional print publications demand high-resolution, professional imagery to maintain brand authority. Without access to our usual photographers or live events, we were forced to think creatively for visual branding.

The Solution: A Design-First Architecture

Working closely with an internal design lead and a contract specialist, I spearheaded a "scrappy yet sophisticated" aesthetic shift. We moved away from a photography-dependent layout and pivoted toward a graphic-heavy strategy:

Color & Texture: We utilized bold, vibrant color palettes and textured overlays to create visual depth where photography was lacking.
Geometric Abstraction: We integrated shapes and patterns to "mask" lower-quality candid photos, elevating them into stylized art rather than pixelated snapshots.
Tonal Shift: Amidst a challenging year, we made the conscious choice to create a colorful, optimistic publication that celebrated resilience.

The Result

A high-quality print piece that maintained our professional standard while proving that a clear creative vision can overcome significant logistical barriers.

2018 Annual Report

Leadership Lessons on Budgetary Oversight in 2019

Entering a leadership role mid-cycle often means inheriting verbal agreements made prior to your arrival. During this project, I encountered a significant discrepancy between the expected photography budget and the final invoice.

I initially relied on my knowledge of market rates rather than auditing the specific historical context of the contract. This "knowledge gap" led to an unexpected expense that threatened the project’s ROI.

The Resolution: Fact-Based Negotiation

Rather than simply accepting the overage or damaging the vendor relationship, I initiated a conversation about project scope:

Collaborative Inquiry: I held open dialogues with the Chief Executive and the contractors to bridge the gap between "what was discussed a year ago" and "what was actually delivered."
Scope Realignment: By comparing the deliverables to the original vision, I successfully demonstrated that the actual scope of work was narrower than the initial high-level estimates.
Mutual Compromise: I negotiated a revised fee that respected the contractors' time while protecting the organization’s budget.
The Lesson: Never Assume
This experience fundamentally changed my approach to leadership to always leading through inquiry. I now implement a "Day One Audit" for all inherited projects, ensuring that every budget line item is backed by documentation and clearly understood.

Strategic Publications