Maya Rodgers ’20

Maya Rodgers ’20 turned a Communication Management and Design degree and a graphic design minor into a role that shapes ads, wayfinding, and campaigns across New York City for the American Museum of Natural History.

Maya Rodgers is currently a graphic designer at the American Museum of Natural History. She graduated from Ithaca College in December 2020, with a B.S. degree in Communication Management and Design and a minor in Graphic Design. Through her time at Ithaca College, she focused on graphic design at non-profits and became interested in working in museums and cultural institutions. After interning the spring of her junior year at Corning Museum of Glass, she worked as an Evaluation Intern at Poster House, a museum for posters and design in New York City. Due to the pandemic, she pivoted to a virtual internship, and worked closely with her cohort to develop and evaluate Poster House’s programs and college student outreach. As one of her intern projects, she explored the various kinds of COVID PSA style posters around Ithaca and compared their use of design elements and poster styles. Through this work, she developed her own COVID PSA posters in the style of the famous Armin Hoffmann “Giselle” poster, which were then hung in Poster House upon their reopening to the public in the fall of 2020.

She also entered one of her projects from Graphic Design II, a poster reflecting the style of the Swiss International Design Movement into a competition at the Swiss Consulate. In early 2020, she won first place in the competition. As the winner, her work was hung in the Consulate lobby for a year, and was awarded a $1000.00 prize. She went on to work with the Swiss Consulate on various freelance projects, including a booklet for their 250th anniversary, and continues to work with them on a freelance basis.

A bus shelter on Broadway at West 77th Street displays an American Museum of Natural History ad for "The Secret World of Elephants."

After interning at Poster House, she worked in Ithaca at the Paleontological Research Institution, which houses Museum of the Earth and Cayuga Nature Center. As the Marketing Manager, she worked on a plethora of marketing needs, including running social media, updating the website, designing signage, and more.

Taking her foundation built at PRI and at Ithaca College, she soon moved to a role at New York Historical in New York City. As the Associate Graphic Designer, she worked on designing print pieces for marketing the Museum, New York Times ads, and digital ad campaigns.

Two sets of three screens in a subway corridor display museum ads for the exhibition "For the Win: Objects of Sports Excellence."

In her current role as the Graphic Designer on the Marketing team at American Museum of Natural History, she worked with Pentagram as they refreshed the institution branding, and has implemented a new logo, design system, and font across the Museum since starting in February 2023. She works on designing advertisements for special exhibitions, including campaigns in the New York Times, subway ads, print pieces in magazines, and out of home campaigns across the city. Her work has been featured on the backs of Playbills, on screens in Moynihan Station, and billboards in Soho. She also oversees internal wayfinding design and implements strategies on incorporating new systems across the large Museum campus. She also develops print pieces for public programs, education initiatives, and signature experiences, including the popular Night at the Museum sleepovers.

The Ithaca Graphic Design program holds a special place to her, and she is thankful to have been able to gain knowledge and experience through the courses offered. During her time at IC, she also worked as the Design Editor at the Ithacan.