Worst Design Fails – School Edition

Over the years, Kick Print has contributed to the success of many school events and fundraisers- we’ve supplied merch and apparel for school sports, clubs, and even entire school districts. We love helping out our local schools and well… some could use more design help than others.

Here’s a list of 7 schools that probably no, really should’ve hired a pro.

#1 Stretched Beyond Recognition

“You will never have this day again so make it count.”

These letters look like they’ve been through a medieval stretching device. Had they hired a designer, perhaps those poor letters could’ve been spared.

#2 Just Quit School

Take Action! Quit School!

What are the odds that this anti-smoking ad’s design would ruin itself so perfectly? It’s important the designer knows their canvas-it helps to create mockups and do research before it goes up.

#3 Spirit Hands

Blair Witch Project, Anyone?

These creepy hand prints were supposed to bring school spirit, not look like the bloody handprints of spirits. 😨 It’s important to note color theory and the connotations they have… like red’s association with blood.

#4 Special Children

Very Special

Extra design points to you if you recognized the old WordArt at the top of this pamphlet (if you know what WordArt is you may qualify for seniors’ discounts). In this case, the school not only needs a pro designer, but a pro copy writer as well… a very special writer.

#5 F. ART

“FINE” Arts

We’re not sure if this High School’s Fine Arts department actually thought this was a good design, or did it deliberately as a joke… I mean, how did this get past the school board? Either way, this is a classic case of why peer reviews are very important.

#6 Forward Moving, Still Are You

“Even when you fall on your face, you are still moving forward”

A pro (and even the not-so-pros) would have spotted the flaw in this design: English reading people are used to reading left to right, top to bottom, not from the bottom up. That’s why we read this message backwards. Not to mention, the context for this message is on a staircase, which is a weird place to make a comment about “falling on your face” anyway.

#7 Text Book Fail

Got Your Nose!

Proof your designs, re-proof them, and proof again! Mistakes like these can only be avoided by a team with systems in place to proof designs before they make it to the audience… unless the design team just couldn’t help themselves.

Need help with school fundraising, events, or merch?

It may be a good idea to hire the pros. If you are in need of some school branding assistance, Kick Print can help! We print merch, offer free design, and can even provide your group with a free online store to sell your merch! We handle everything from the design, to the shipping.

Learn more about getting your own online store from Kick Print to raise money for your school, group, or team here.

-The Kick Print Team