Arizona State University graphic design students are set to have their creations broadcast nationally after dominating the annual PSAid contest, a nationwide public service announcement design competition for college students.

The USAID Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI) and USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA) host the annual event where students create PSAs explaining why cash is the best way to donate to international disaster relief efforts. The CIDI and USAID/BHA saw some outstanding submissions from juniors in the graphic design program from The Design School.

As part of their GRA 362: Visual Communication IV studio, students entered the contest, which offered categories for static images, GIFs and videos. Students had about two to three weeks to ideate, create concepts and finalize their designs. The competition provided a real-world application of their skills, with the added incentive of potential nationwide exposure. The winning designs are guaranteed to be broadcast across 150 media markets in major cities (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta) and on popular streaming platforms (Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Prime).

The ASU graphic design students secured the top three positions in all categories, including the people's choice award. Their designs will be featured in CIDI's "Cash is Best" campaign, which in previous years has reached over 1 billion people.

Izie Figuero, who earned first place in the GIF category, shared her thoughts on how the contest influenced her design process. 

"(The contest) helped me tie in research into my design," she said. "There's a lot of reasons why donating cash is better than donating physical items. But the reasons why are very different. So I had to research what those reasons are specifically. Then I had to pick one or multiple and work that into my design."

The PSAid contest has proven to be a valuable learning experience for these design students, going far beyond a typical classroom assignment. Not only did it challenge them to apply their skills to a real-world issue, but it also highlighted the crucial role of effective communication in humanitarian efforts.

"Throughout this experience, I learned how valuable cash is during international disasters,” said Sydnee Reed, who placed third in the static image category. “I hope people see this and understand that needs are different in every situation, and the best way to make a change is to donate something that is universally valued."