The challenge
NPEP had no shortage of stories. The challenge was building the right conditions for those stories to be told.
Students, alumni, faculty, staff, families, donors and university leaders all had a stake in how the program presented itself. The work needed to bring those audiences together without reducing incarcerated students to institutional success stories — or speaking on their behalf.
That meant creating more than a collection of content. NPEP needed an editorial system: one capable of holding many voices, serving different audiences and still making clear what the program did and why it mattered.
The approach
We began by reshaping NPEP’s website and developing a long-term editorial strategy across its channels.
At the center of the work was a flagship magazine featuring writing and artwork by incarcerated students and alumni. We developed the publication alongside its contributors, providing editorial structure and support while ensuring that students retained a meaningful role in how their work and experiences were presented.
We carried the same approach into newsletters, web stories and media materials. The goal was consistency without flattening: one recognizable program story, told by people who did not all sound the same.
The outcome
The work gave NPEP a stronger editorial foundation ahead of its historic graduation.
It directly informed national and international coverage from ABC News, Reuters, PBS, the Chicago Tribune, NPR and The Guardian. It also helped the program strengthen media relationships, attract new donors and build greater internal alignment.
More importantly, NPEP had a public voice its students, staff and supporters could recognize as their own.