Relay GSE

Relay Graduate School of Education is a private graduate school that offers a variety of practice-based programs for aspiring and current teachers. Relay New York, chartered in 2013, is the first NYC accredited graduate teaching school in over 80 years.

Pentagram was hired to develop the environmental graphics for Relay’s new 40,000 sq ft space located in NYC’s Financial District. With a variety of spaces for study, learning, and working, it was important for the environmental graphics to not only help denote these various spaces, but to also embody the passion and spirt of the teachers and staff walking the halls.

Relay’s mission for equipping teachers with tools to make impacting differences in the lives of students, was an important aspect for us to celebrate and storytell throughout the space. Each teacher has a story to share, and each story has the ability to uplift and invigorate those that hear and see it. Through various means of interaction and opportunities for appreciation, we created a system of environmental graphics to honor the spirit of education, teaching, and learning.

Lining the glass walls throughout the space, are the names of teachers who have inspired the Relay graduate students, faculty, and staff throughout their lives. These names not only serve as an homage, but also a reminder of the significant impact teachers can make on student lives.

In the Resource room, there is a large interactive gallery wall for the Relay graduate students to display the achievements of their students’ work. The simple front loading picture frames allow for easy and organic updating overtime.

Adoring the hallways throughout the space are framed photographs of cherished books owned and annotated by various Relay faculty members.


Project credits

Designed at Pentagram by
Partner, Michael Bierut
Associate Partner, Delta Murphy
Associate Partner, Britt Cobb