UCSC Teaching & Learning Center

Objective

UC Santa Cruz needed to merge two existing academic departments into a single, unified center that could serve its diverse teaching community. The goal was to create a new identity that honored the university’s tradition of pedagogical excellence while signaling a bold, forward-thinking approach to teaching innovation.

Barretto-Co. Was engaged to help shape this transformation through branding, content strategy, and digital design.

Scope

Visual Identity Design
Information Architecture
Content Strategy
Website Design

The Solution

The result was the UCSC Teaching & Learning Center (TLC): a new entity honoring a legacy of strong pedagogy while building a modern, accessible resource for educators.

Our creative services included naming support, visual identity design, content strategy, and website development. We crafted a flexible brand system, typography, logo, and color palette that communicates professionalism with warmth. The accompanying website architecture and messaging were built to guide diverse audiences, from early-career instructors to senior faculty, through TLC’s offerings.

The identity strikes a balance between academic integrity and approachability, representing the university’s values without leaning on institutional clichés.

Impact

The new identity successfully unified two departments and established the TLC as a central resource for academic development at UC Santa Cruz.

By simplifying access to teaching resources and creating a recognizable digital presence, the TLC positioned itself as a cornerstone of professional development and instructional support at UCSC.