New Hanover County Schools

When Mandy Mills stepped into the role of Director of Career & Technical Education for New Hanover County Schools (NHCS), she quickly recognized that while the district’s CTE programs were robust and well-aligned with local workforce needs, they weren’t getting the visibility—or enrollment—they deserved. Across the district, there were gaps in awareness, especially among students and families who would benefit from access to hands-on, career-connected learning. It was time to shift the narrative.

NHCS partnered with Rhodes Branding, starting with a CTE Brand Audit, Focus Groups, and a Brand Immersion Workshop. This foundational work led to several months of collaborative planning and marketing support, followed by creative production.

The Rhodes team spent one week filming across high schools, capturing students, teachers, and classrooms in action. The result was a suite of visual assets that included fourteen 15-second cluster videos, a flagship 60-second brand video, and a full library of professional photos—all designed to work seamlessly across digital, social, and print.

Rhodes then collaborated with the district to design and launch a new CTE microsite—an ADA-compliant, mobile-optimized presence on the NHCS website that centralized information, embedded new video content, and created a user-friendly experience for students, families, and community partners.

Rhodes also developed a polished industry pitch deck to support NHCS in building deeper partnerships with local businesses, community colleges, and workforce leaders. Together, these efforts laid the foundation for a unified, modern CTE brand—one that reflects the energy and opportunity of the programs it represents.

With all of these building blocks in place, our team developed the creative concepts and media plan for a multi-channel awareness campaign: The Workforce is Calling.