The Vision
The inspiration for this magazine's theme of interdisciplinary health came from a previous collaboration between the Hudson College of Public Health and the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts. The result was a book titled Oklahoma Pride: Working Together for the Well-Being of All Oklahomans, about health outcomes in our state. This project was the brainchild of OU alumnus, philanthropis and entrepreneur Gene Rainbolt, who came up with the idea after receiving a piece of art from Oklahoma artist Greg Burns. (That image was eventually used to create the cover art for the book.) In 2018, Rainbolt approached Dr. Gary Raskob at the HCOPH with his idea to use art and imagery to start a social conversation about health in Oklahoma. With Raskob's guidance and the help of the former Oklahoma Commissioner of Health, Dr. Terry Cline, Rainbolt assembled a team of visionaries, leaders and experts in public health, community engagement, art and graphic design to serve as a steering committee for the project.
Rainbolt felt that the image from Burns was an incredible example of how art can be used to elicit emotion and encourage people to act. Rainbolt's goal was to use imagery to capture Oklahoma's current state of health and also depict aims for improving health across our state. The decision was made to work with the graphic design senior capstone class taught by Karen Hayes-Thumann on the OU Norman campus. “The involvement of OU visual arts students made this book unique,” says Rainbolt. “As our next generation of leaders, today’s students will bear the consequences of these challenges, and viewing these issues from their perspective was a critical aspect of this project.”
The steering committee agreed on the top five to seven health indicators they felt were important to discuss in the book. These indicators were explained and presented to the graphic design students during the fall 2019 semester. After receiving a Public Health 101 crash course from Raskob and Cline, the design students created images for the chosen health indicators. Two concept meetings were held for Rainbolt, Raskob, and Cline to give students feedback on their renderings. This culminated in a final presentation for the entire steering committee at the HCOPH. It's important to note that the teams of students produced more than just images; they created entire micro-campaigns with imagery for social media, billboards, etc. Out of the numerous designs, the committee had the difficult task of choosing the top images to include in the book. In recognition of their hard work, the class received a paid trip to New York City to attend an annual art exhibit. Given the partnership's success, Rainbolt decided to develop a scholarship for future graphic design students interested in public health topics.
The Outcome
The magazine team at the HCOPH was excited to work with Hayes-Thumann and her fall 2023 semester graphic design capstone students to design the 2023 edition. Nine groups of two students worked together to share their vision. The version you are currently reading is the first-place design chosen by Rainbolt, HCOPH Dean Dale Bratzler, the featured faculty members from each HCOPH department, and the magazine contributors. This year’s magazine design was created by OU visual communication seniors Abby McInnis and Emma Williams. With the generous scholarship from Rainbolt, we have provided both Abby and Emma with a $1,000 scholarship. The covers from the second-place and third-place winners can be found on the back cover of the magazine. Each second-place winner received a $500 scholarship, and each third-place winner received a $250 scholarship.
1st Place Winners: Abby McInnis and Emma Williams
2nd Place Winners: Mia Carnahan and Tran Nguyen
3rd Place Winners: Shane Hamlin and Ivan Rivera
This was an incredible opportunity for our college to work with colleagues and students on the OU Norman campus to promote public health. Thank you to Hayes-Thumann and her outstanding seniors for their artistic expertise, insight and support in developing the 2023 edition of OU Public Health!