The Public Access Design Fellowship invites New York City-based emerging designers and artists to learn about community-engaged design alongside a cohort.

Over the course of the Fellowship, Fellows attend about six meetings that take place every other month beginning January 2021. During these meetings, Fellows come together to learn about relevant topics including but not limited to: CUP’s collaborative and participatory design methodology, anti-oppression and anti-racism practices in design, and community organizing. 

In addition to the Fellowship meetings, three to four selected Fellows will have the opportunity to collaborate with CUP and a community organization to produce innovative tools that make information about important social justice issues accessible to historically underrepresented communities. 

A jury is held twice a year to select one to two Public Access Design projects and selects a fellow to work on each project. Over the course of the year three to four fellows will have the opportunity to work on a Public Access Design project. 

We want to uplift designers who identify with communities that have been historically marginalized in the design professions. We encourage designers who identify with those groups to apply, including but not limited to people of color, people from low-income, LGBTQ+, immigrant communities, formerly incarcerated people, and others.

Note: CUP is actively monitoring and planning for how we can best keep designers and community partners safe during COVID. It is likely that at least the first half of the fellowship will take place on Zoom. 

Reasons to Apply

• The Fellowship is an opportunity to learn from and build relationships with other emerging designers interested in contributing their design skills to community-engaged work.
• During the Fellowship you will learn about CUP’s community-engaged design practices and how you can apply it to your own design practice. 
• Fellows have the opportunity to meet previous CUP collaborators such as prominent designers, leaders in the advocacy world, and CUP alumni. 
• Through the Fellowship meetings Fellows gain a stronger understanding of how to collaborate with community organizations.
• With each meeting, Fellows can reflect on their design practice and the design community through an anti-racist, equity-driven lens.

Reflections from Previous Fellows

• “It re-cemented the things that we want to do [with our design practice]. We are going to approach next year with new goals, new motivation, and new people.”
• “I’ve always wanted to work with community organizations and have that be a big part of my work. Meeting with the alumni showed me how realistic, how big a part of social design can take up in my practice.”
• “This fellowship helped me refocus my goals and my destination as a creative.”
• “I appreciated being pushed to talk about privilege and different perspectives in life.”

All Public Access Design Fellows receive:

• A $200 honorarium
• Press and promotion from CUP
• Attend Fellowship meetings

Fellows who work on Public Access Design projects also receive:

• An additional $3,000 stipend
• Full attribution and rights to reproduction for their work
• Project publicity through CUP, including press releases, exhibit entries, and design award submissions

CUP manages the collaborative process, provides production costs, and helps staff each project with additional design support, research, and writing as needed. CUP is committed to innovative design, and will be an advocate for creative approaches to each project.

We seek skilled, emerging designers (individuals and teams!) with an interest in both social justice and a collaborative, community-engaged design process. Fellows should be able to create original and inventive visual solutions.

The jury will evaluate applicants based on the following criteria:

• Did the applicant present quality design work?
• Did the applicant express that they are open to learn about and work through the challenges of designing for advocacy and community organizing?
• Does that applicant have work that shows an ability to clearly organize information, use typography, typeset copy, and create graphics and images through illustration, collage, photography, or other methods?
• Did the applicant express interest in CUP’s deeply collaborative process?
• Is the applicant capable of creating original, inventive work that can meet the needs of community partners?

Note: Applicants do not have to have prior experience in social justice work or community-engaged design to be considered a strong candidate for the Fellowship. 

• July 21, 2020 Call for Public Access Design Fellows opens
• August 31, 2020 at 12:00pm EST Call for Public Access Design Fellows closes 
• Mid-September 2020 Jury meets to review applications and select fellows
• Mid-October 2020 Selected applicants are notified

The members of this year’s jury are:

• Kitkat Pecson, Senior Designer and Illustrator 
• Jade Broomfield, Previous Fellow and Designer at All Birds
• Basma Eid, Program Coordinator at Freedom to Thrive
• Tok Michelle Oyewole, Policy and Communications Organizer at NYC Environmental Justice Alliance

Should I apply to Making Policy Public or to Public Access Design? 

Both! We encourage you to submit your work for consideration to both programs. 

Making Policy Public projects are intensive collaborations with CUP and a community organization for 8–10 months that result in a fold-out poster that breaks down and demystifies a complex social justice issue. Designers receive an honorarium of $5,000 for their participation. 

Read more about Making Policy Public at makingpolicypublic.net.

Can I apply as part of a design team? 

Yes, applications from teams are welcome for Public Access Design and highly encouraged for Making Policy Public!

What work should I include with my application? 

Please include what you consider your strongest work and be sure to include some examples of print work. If you’re an individual submitting work that you did as part of a group, please indicate, in the caption, your specific role and contribution to the project.

Note: Renderings of urban spaces and architecture, while appreciated as a method of image-making, are outside of the work we consider when reviewing portfolios for Public Access Design Fellows.

Other Questions? 

If you have any questions about the Fellowship or the application process, email Amanda Finuccio, Community Education Program Manager at amanda@welcometocup.org