There is no single path into design. No single journey. No one experience.

But no matter what road you take, there will be barriers and potholes. That is true for every designer, but is painfully true for young, Black designers.

Thirty-seven years ago, designer Cheryl D. Miller talked about it in her landmark thesis, “Transcending the Problems of the Black Graphic Designer to Success in the Marketplace.” If anything, the “problems” have become even more difficult to overcome since it was published.

“We are trying to fix a system that is broken, one we as designers should re-imagine and build from the ground up.” says Yocasta LaChapelle, Director of Talent at COLLINS. She developed our high school internship program with Nick Ace, Amber Guild, Leland Maschmeyer and Brian Collins seven years ago.