August 18, 2020 — Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix debuted an “AMDG” graphic for the new school year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: Awareness, Masks, Distance, Greater Good.
Brophy’s principal Bob Ryan suggested to director of communications Kathy Mabry that a campaign of some sort would be helpful in effectively delivering the message of mandatory mitigation strategies such as masks and distancing. Mabry came up with the AMDG concept and her colleague, Stefani Stephani, created the visual elements, and AMDG 2020 was born as a community-wide campaign to help contain COVID-19.
“We were the first school in Arizona to announce that masks would be mandatory when students returned to school in the fall, and we were looking for a compelling way to get the message across to families,” said Mabry.
The concept was then picked up by Jesuit high schools across the country, including Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Missouri; Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland; De Smet Jesuit High in St. Louis; and McQuaid Jesuit High in Rochester, New York. At Brophy, the message is being used on social media, the website and weekly emails, as well as on signs around campus.