Arkansas Tech University (ATU), a comprehensive public institution with campuses in Russellville, Ozark, and a regional Career Center, partnered with Guide Studio to develop a cohesive signage and wayfinding program that would improve navigation, enhance the visitor experience, and reinforce the University’s evolving identity. With a growing student population and increasing demand for intuitive, user-centered environments, the University sought a solution that would simplify access to destinations across multiple campuses while creating a consistent and recognizable campus presence. Prior to this effort, ATU’s signage was limited, inconsistent, and heavily reliant on verbal directions and local landmarks—a challenge for students, families, guests, and vendors alike.
Guide Studio collaborated with engineering and planning firm Crafton Tull to craft a strategic and scalable signage system rooted in functionality, brand alignment, and user experience. Through stakeholder workshops, journey mapping, and on-site analysis, the team uncovered key issues such as confusing nomenclature, unmarked building entrances, parking frustration, and a disconnect between the campus and Downtown Russellville. The solution included a unified family of signs—vehicular and pedestrian directionals, welcome center identification, parking signage, building and athletic facility identifiers, and digital displays. A modular design approach was central to ensuring long-term flexibility and ease of maintenance. Recommendations also introduced the concept of Welcome Centers at each campus, a simplified parking identification scheme, and improved connections between pedestrian hubs and high-interest destinations such as Tucker Coliseum, the Library and Technology Center, and the future Tech Plaza.
The completed sign standards manual now serves as a blueprint for phased implementation across ATU’s campuses. It empowers the university to maintain a strong, clear, and branded presence while supporting a welcoming, safe, and easy-to-navigate environment for students, visitors, and the broader community. From first-time campus tours to major university events, the new wayfinding program delivers a meaningful and lasting first impression that reflects ATU’s forward momentum and commitment to service.
