Tim Herd, PhD candidate and Wasserman Fellow in the Higher Education & Organizational Change (HEOC) Program at UCLA. Tim Herd is currently a fourth-year PhD candidate and Wasserman Fellow in the Higher Education & Organizational Change (HEOC) program at UCLA. Outside of his studies, Tim also serves in the capacity of a creative consultant that partners with non-profits and other organizations around the areas of governance, culture, and student success. Tim is also the founder of two organizations, Rising Black Men and the Grosse Pointe Black Alumni Association, and co-founder of another, the Doctoral Student Writing Collective. Tim is passionate about improving community through mentorship and support, which he supplements through his involvement in media.
The role of a creative consultant is to provide expertise to help clients solve creative problems and generate ideas. The work focuses on brainstorming innovative solutions and these areas of solution and generative ideas consist mainly within creative projects, brand identity development, and digital visibility. Above all, creative consultants identify issues in creative projects in order to propose transformative solutions. Over the course of the past five years, I have engaged in creative consulting, working on projects from Selena Gomez’ mental health company Wondermind to a creative project targeted on closing the digital divide in ward within DC. These, along with numerous experiences within the higher education and creative space have allowed me to refine the consulting that I conduct. A 2024 report by the Lumina Foundation concluded that 70% of working-age people in the US will need a degree or credential beyond high school by 2031 to fulfill labor needs. In that same report, it was concluded that only 54.3% of working-aged people were qualified. This comes at the helm of significant conversation about a growing disillusionment of college, which has risen to factors such as increasing tuition, fees, and student loan debt. The Education Data Initiative found the average cost of college including textbooks, housing, and supplies total up to $38,270. As higher education institutions continue to reconceptualize their role in supporting the next generation, creative consultants can make an impact through collaborative partnerships.
Brand Identity:
Creative consultants can assist universities in re-establishing their brand identity, also known as the mission in the university context. Beal University in Maine recently updated their brand identify to reflect their unwavering commitment to shaping the future of education. With the evolution of technology and a new administration that has made repeated attacks at the Department of Education, universities refreshing themselves on their mission and brand is an invaluable action moving forward. As a 2021 Forbes article once concluded, universities have multiple but ill-defined goals, making success hard to measure. Creative consultants can add value to the development of more well-defined goals and mission fidelity. The brand identity of colleges and universities are integral in self-accountability through its external and internal display of its mission and ideas. Along with building trust with the surrounding community and educational stakeholders, brand identity can increase university recognition and provide clarity for all members of the institution.
Digital Visibility
Creative consultants can assist universities in the act of digitally highlighting the positive effects of attending colleges and universities. In a September 2024 poll by the Learning Network, nearly 400 teenagers claimed to use social media as their main sources of news. Colleges and universities are often called the ivory tower, which is defined by Meriam Webster as “a secluded place that affords the means of treating practical issues with an impractical often escapist attitude”. The ivory tower is often referred to as a place of learning, and in these places can equip students with skill development, personal growth, and opportunities for civic engagement amongst other areas. These benefits, which are essential to the structures of higher education institutions, need to continually be emphasized to college-ready students, who will make up the next generation of leaders. One of the biggest ways to connect with this demographic of students and also to promote awareness of various initiatives is through social media, as another recent report concluded that 87% of Americans use social media daily. Universities using mediums such as Instagram and TikTok can also be helpful in reaching a younger audience by highlighting some of the exciting work that a university may be implementing. Creative consultants can be helpful by offering strategic marketing and digital transformation.
Identifying Creative Projects
Creative consultants can assist universities in the development of creative projects that will create various university improvements, from departmental to larger university-wide initiatives. Depending on the various background and expertise of the creative consultant, this partnership can be beneficial for students, faculty, and staff. For example, at the department level, a creative consultant with an expertise in web development could partner with the Computer Science department to provide additional programming for students around their own portfolio development. The creative consultant in this capacity could also be helpful in providing trainings with staff and faculty around web development, identifying potential employers and summer internship opportunities for students by leveraging their own networks, and serving as a direct source for students through their practical experience. As a creative consultant with a background in student leadership development and organizational culture, some of my creative projects have included partnering with offices of Student Success and Academic Affairs. In this capacity, I have developed projects with student leaders in order to assist in their navigation of universities academically and socially. It has also included working in collaboration with universities on more specific topics, such as identifying strategies to improve overall engagement between student organizations and university governing boards. As some colleges and universities continue to combat the narrative of the value of higher education, creative consultants can empower these universities through brand identity, digital visibility, and facilitating creative projects.
Transformative Solutions
Creative consultants can engage in the brainstorming of transformative solutions that can play a role in the reform of higher education institutions. These solutions can provide valuable assistance in displaying the value of higher education institutions to a larger audience while through brand refinement and additional creative projects. These solution areas will not also be valuable for the bottom line of universities, but it will also assist as universities continue to identify their roles for the present and the future.