Browning School
Buzzer Magazine—Editorial Redesign & Editions
The Browning School in Manhattan, founded in 1888, educates boys in the principles of intellectual accomplishment and ethical integrity, fostering the growth of courageous and compassionate men. Since 1920, the School has published the Buzzer, its biannual magazine, to share community news and celebrate student achievement.
In 2019, the School engaged Designlounge to redesign the magazine’s cover, nameplate, and overall structure from the ground up—transforming it from a scrapbook into a refined, editorial lookbook. Through expressive typography and purposeful photography, we built a flexible visual system for telling the stories that define a Browning education: deep relationships, intellectual rigor, and the enduring responsibility to help boys grow into good men.
Buzzer Winter 2025–2026
This edition of the Buzzer marked a pivotal moment in Browning’s history—its first academic year operating across two buildings. The School introduced a new Upper School facility designed specifically for older boys, complete with a regulation-size gym for home games, while the original K–8 building evolved into a dynamic environment where Middle School students could lead and mentor their Lower School peers. The issue explored what it means to be one school in two places: expanded space, new opportunities for leadership, and a renewed sense of community across generations of students.
As the 13th edition we designed—and the debut of the 6264 mark we created—the issue presents the new identity in a bold and vibrant way. The identity—referencing the School’s two addresses—symbolizes unity across campuses and visually reinforces the idea of Browning as a single institution with a shared mission.
Buzzer Summer 2023
In this issue, the cover story celebrated Browning’s Certificates of Distinction scholars. Through independent inquiry in engineering, the humanities, data science, and the visual arts, these students pursued self-directed work that extended well beyond standard coursework. The spreads were designed around crisp black-and-white portrait photography, underscoring both focus and individuality.
A second cover story explored the theme of leadership in Middle School—a narrative we also developed for Browning’s Buzzwords website.
Buzzer Winter 2022–2023
How do children learn to read—and what should students be reading in school? How do middle schoolers move from concrete to abstract thinking? In this edition of the Browning Buzzer, the feature story, “The Power of the Written Word,” explored these foundational questions.
We shaped the narrative through expressive original photography, bold typography, and a system of graphic icons that invited readers to actively interpret and engage with the stories.
Buzzer Summer 2022
“Looking Back and Looking Ahead” framed the feature story of the Summer 2022 Buzzer. We interpreted the idea of “before and after COVID” through a photo essay organized around defining themes—Learn, Visit, Gather, Drama, Engage, Build, Music, and Future—capturing both the disruptions of the pandemic and the resilience of the Browning community.
Although the pandemic had not yet been formally declared over, the issue reflected how the School had met unprecedented challenges with adaptability and purpose. At the same time, Browning was already looking forward, advancing plans for a new Upper School in Manhattan that would expand enrollment and create new possibilities for teaching and learning.
Buzzer Winter 2021–2022
The pandemic reshaped daily life and prompted the School to reaffirm its commitment to making Browning the best possible place for boys—under any circumstances. The Winter 2022 issue explored how the School made learning more meaningful, holistic, and joyful.
Central to this effort was strengthening students’ understanding of how they learn best, while fostering greater ownership and agency in that process.
Buzzer Summer 2021
In this edition of the Buzzer the feature story focused on the role of student agency and authentic engagement at Browning. We designed the cover story in which the boys expressed their passions and goals, surrounded by bold typography.
Buzzer Summer 2020
As this edition of the Buzzer entered planning, the pandemic began to take hold. The feature story, “Browning Connect: Charting a New Course Online,” documented the School community’s remarkable effort to complete the academic year through remote learning. Rather than creating a temporary fix, Browning built a lasting online experience that allowed boys to grow and connect despite physical distance.
We expressed this resilience through a visual metaphor: students, teachers, and families on individual “islands,” linked by a steady network of digital connections—imagined as precisely timed, zooming ferries symbolizing movement and community.
Buzzer Winter 2019–2020
The first issue with the new cover, nameplate, and overall redesigned inside structure.
