A creative agency on a mission
Not sorry. Just Mighty.
In early 2000, a ragtag band of writers, designers, fundraising veterans, nonprofit leaders and even a psychologist completing her doctoral thesis at Harvard came together, threw caution to the wind, and started a mighty little company that we knew could. Could do good work while doing good. Could help advance causes we cared about. Could make an impact, however incremental.
Twenty-six years later, we may still be ragtag, even battle-scarred and weather-worn, but we’re still just as passionate about powering change, and the indomitable power of change that we’ve helped engineer over the past two decades with our mighty partners. View our history →
Strategy & Research
Branding & Design
Integrated Campaigns
Content & Storytelling
Multimedia Production
Digital Experiences
Social Media
Stakeholder & Community Engagement
Fundraising
Twenty-six years of mighty work
What was happening in the world, and what we were building alongside it.
2000
We survive Y2K.
Mighty Engine founded.
Helped rebrand Chicanos Por La Causa, one of the largest Latino nonprofits in the country.
Dr. Heseung Song begins her role as Chief Executive Officer.
2001
The nation mourns after 9/11.
Planning begins for the HomeFront Greater Philadelphia Conference, a gathering of regional leaders to discuss a unified approach to security.
2002
RNA discoveries revolutionize the understanding of cell evolution.
Moved to Science Center to support regional advancements in life sciences. Science Center, Quorum and biotechs continue using branding we develop to this day.
Steven Sonntag joins as Head Writer.
2003
World tourism severely impacted by SARS epidemic and the Iraq conflict.
Yahoo ranks our revamped Philadelphia tourism site #1. VisitPhilly.com remains one of region’s most-visited sites 22 years later.
2004
Life sciences community pursues opportunities emerging from completion of the Human Genome Project.
Played a key role in organizing regional biotech conference. Branded and provided communications support for BioAdvance, an investment fund for transformative life science companies, which has since supported over 115 companies and the development of 12 FDA-approved products.
2005
International tourism begins to rebound.
As PHLCVB’s agency of record, supported efforts that generated millions through business meetings and international leisure travel.
2006
Cities compete for runners and the economic gains they and their families bring after the runner’s high and other health benefits of running are popularized.
Rebranding of the Philadelphia Marathon helped secure top-tier sponsorships and triple the number of runners during our eight-year run.
Jennifer Krout joins as Operations Manager.
2007
Ecotourism—environmentally responsible travel to natural areas—is the fastest growing sector of tourism and the subject of research and conferences.
Think Outside, a listening campaign we designed and led, helped stakeholders secure unprecedented grants for sustainable ecotourism.
2008
Barack Obama elected 44th President of the United States. Yes, we still can.
Developed the new brand for ForeverFamily, an Atlanta-based nonprofit seen as a national leader in providing compassionate care for the children of incarcerated mothers, to support the replication of their model in other cities.
Rebranded Taller Puertorriqueño “El Corazón Cultural del Barrio” (The Cultural Heart of Latino Philadelphia). The arts organization continues to embrace this tagline.
2009
No Child Left Behind Act, signed into law by President George W. Bush seven years earlier, set up years of teaching to the test, harming disadvantaged students the most.
Rebranded C2 Education’s tutoring centers offering academic support, test prep and college counseling, helping it to expand to 135 centers across 15 states and Canada.
New tagline—BE SMARTER—inverted profile of center students, from those who need extra help to those who actively seek it because that’s what smarter students do.
2010
History tourism continues to grow worldwide, calling for sites to balance visitation with heritage conservation.
Moved to Old City and worked with a neighborhood committee to develop their new “Independent by Design” branding to attract new residents, visitors and investment.
2011
Occupy Wall Street protests begin.
Played significant role in promoting the newly-expanded Pennsylvania Convention Center, helping secure more than $4 billion in future meetings and conferences.
2012
Studies show almost half of the nation’s poorest families have inadequate Internet access.
At Philly Tech Week, promoted the Philly KEYSPOT initiative we designed to narrow the city’s digital divide.
2013
Meta-review of studies shows one in ten children will be the victim of sexual abuse before their 18th birthday.
Launched a campaign to reach families whose children suffered sexual abuse by Delaware pediatrician, which led to a $123 million class action settlement.
2014
774 million adults globally lack basic reading and writing skills. Only 46% of all American adults are able to understand complex text.
Learning Loves Company, the Mayor’s Commission on Literacy campaign we designed to recruit volunteers to promote adult literacy, applauded for its emphasis on the joy found in mutual learning—all within Philly-branded settings.
2015
Early-literacy crisis made clear with standardized tests showing two out of every three students in Philadelphia not reading at grade level by the time they start fourth grade.
Selected as the lead branding and strategic communications agency for Read by 4th to help jumpstart the nation’s largest regional coalition of early-literacy advocates and promote its partners and events, eventually including the Reading Captains, Free Library of Philadelphia’s Reading Champs and Summer of Wonder and Reading Promise Week.
2016
National survey shows nearly 40% of U.S. adults aged 20+ have obesity. Health disparities persist with Black Americans experiencing significantly worse health outcomes than white peers.
Nationwide, more than 15% of all students are Black while only 7% of all teachers are Black. Black students with at least one Black teacher in K–3 are 13% more likely to graduate from high school and 19% more likely to enroll in college. Black students who have at least two Black teachers in K–3 are 32% more likely to go to college.
Then-mayor Michael Nutter applauds Philly Powered campaign we designed for Philadelphians to encourage other Philadelphians to add physical activity into their daily routines, taking advantage of free or low-cost activities near them.
Our CEO meets with Sharif El-Mekki (then principal at Mastery Charter School at Shoemaker), starting a productive and enduring relationship that propelled launching of the Center for Black Educator Development and its mission to rebuild the national Black teacher pipeline.
2017
Howard University report says the 14,542 people who died from gun violence in the past year does not account for the exponentially more impacted by sustained traumatic stress in urban areas where gun violence is prevalent.
Philadelphia School District reports on the potential impact of under-resourced schools on student learning.
In partnership with Drs. John Rich and Ted Corbin, our OUR WORDS HEAL campaign helps shift trauma framework from “trauma informed” to healing.
The Right Books campaign we designed as a fundraising effort to provide a leveled and culturally-competent library for every K–3 classroom in Philadelphia reached its goal of $3.5 million a year early. By the following year, standardized test scores for reading increased by five percentage points.
2018
Pew report puts level of Philadelphians living in poverty at 26%—the highest of any big city in the country.
Studies show children whose parents register their children early or on time for kindergarten do better in school, but half of all parents register their children late.
Provided strategic communications support to Philadelphia Community Empowerment Office, whose mission is to promote racial equity, greater financial stability, and self-sufficiency for the city’s most vulnerable populations.
Provided market research support to School District to guide the development of a kindergarten registration campaign.
2019
Larry Krasner starts his second year as Philadelphia District Attorney after campaigning on reforming bail, rethinking the prosecution of certain drug crimes, and addressing the issue of over-incarceration.
Philadelphia School District experiences teacher attrition rates of about 50% for new teachers in charter schools and 45% in district schools.
Supported strategic communications of new (and completely non-controversial) Philly D.A. Larry Krasner, including launching a rebuilt website.
Led focus groups on teacher recruitment and retention, the results of which were shared with the Philadelphia School District to inform their teacher pipeline efforts.
We helped historic Christ Church secure the funds—months ahead of their deadline and amounts larger than originally targeted—to “restore America’s steeple,” which was in desperate need of repair.
Assisted Maria Toorpakai, once the highest ranked female squash player in Pakistan who dressed like a boy until she was 16 to play competitive sports, to set up a foundation encouraging families to educate girls and allow them to play sports.
Moved to the Pipeline.
2020
COVID sweeps the globe, claiming more than 16 million lives, triggering massive social and psychological upheaval and impacting the education of millions of schoolchildren.
Created for the Free Library of Philadelphia “Summer of Wonder” campaign and designed the “Reading Champs” year-long playful-learning activities booklet. Distributed 25,000 copies of Reading Champs to families across the city during the pandemic.
Led the Come Aboard the Reading Promise campaign to reach families during their routine public-transit commutes with playful-learning reading prompts at subway stations, train cars, bus shelters and buses to spur on early-literacy experiences for families in alternative spaces.
2021
Studies identify high-priority populations for smoking cessation, namely: those in recovery, pregnant or new moms, LGBTQIA+ individuals, workers in high-exposure industries, veterans, and Hispanic/Latino communities.
Philadelphia remains the poorest big city in the United States with a poverty rate of 22.8%.
Partnering with the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, we developed the “IF I CAN QUIT, SO CAN YOU” peer-to-peer campaign modeled after the CDC’s “Tips from Former Smokers” to encourage people to quit smoking by featuring real former smokers they can relate to.
Rebuilt the local United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey website as a national model to support its renewed focus on combating poverty.
2022
Recent research reinforces that, despite being only about 3% of colleges and universities in the United States, HBCUs produce nearly 20% of all Black graduates and 25% of Black graduates in STEM fields. All while challenged by historic underfunding and marginalization.
Report finds educational opportunities for women across Asia—and especially in Southeast Asia—continue to lag, but that increasing them is the key to unlocking the social, political, and economic potential of the region.
Began a long-term partnership with the United Negro College Fund, helping them advance the mission of their Institute for Capacity Building, which is to partner with Black colleges and universities to propel a shared pursuit of student success, community advancement and the fight for racial-justice equity.
Assisted the Harpswell Foundation, a nonprofit based in the U.S. that promotes educational equity for women in Southeast Asia, on a comprehensive rebranding effort and new website to better deliver their messaging to stakeholders.
Makiah Stevens joins as Assistant Producer.
Temi Oshadiya joins as Project Manager.
2023
The American Academy of Pediatrics promotes early exposure to sign language as a means to improve cognitive, social and emotional development for all children.
School District of Philadelphia shifts back to the science-of-reading, phonics-based teaching approach for early literacy.
A report from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank calls for addressing long-standing, unique challenges Black homeowners face to help erase the Black-White homeownership gap.
Planning begins for Right2ReadPhilly, novel research-backed campaign designed to promote fun, free and easy activities families can do together to promote literacy and early childhood development.
Right2ReadPhilly piloted interventions—Simple Signs and the Freedom Schools Alphabet Song—created to break through the busyness and distractions of life to engage Philly families by leveraging under-recognized, under-appreciated, under-tapped, under-studied and under-shared concepts and strategies of marginalized communities of which many Philly families are a part.
Branded and developed outreach strategies and a website for Philly 5000, an initiative targeting low-income first-time homebuyers across the city.
Laureen Wong joins as Art Director.
2024
Philadelphia students made nominal gains in their standardized test scores last school year, but PSSA 2023–2024 shows that only about a third of Philly students score proficient or above in English Language Arts. Major gaps between student groups remain with Black and Latino students still scoring far below their white and Asian peers.
Pope Francis calls for expanded guaranteed basic income programs to combat global poverty, especially among families with small children.
Donald Trump re-elected president.
At last count, Right2ReadPhilly campaign reaches a minimum of 100,000 people, a conservative estimate based on over 2,399,679 media impressions, underscoring that Philly families will engage in playful learning that is easy, fun and free.
Helped Philly Joy Bank develop a targeted outreach campaign and website for a guaranteed-income pilot program for 250 pregnant Philadelphians from select neighborhoods.
Increasingly focused on helping our clients reinforce their messaging in the face of determined misinformation.
Moved to the Industrious coworking space in the Fashion District.
Lauren Bryant joins as Graphic Designer.
Alexander Falconer joins as Senior Visual Designer.
2025
Yale study reports colleges have witnessed an alarming rise in mental health issues among students.
Philly schools continue implementing a $70 million curriculum update for English Language Arts, math, and science, calling new instructional materials “state-of-the-art” and a core part of new five-year strategic plan.
Supported UNCF on the editing and design of Flourishing: Bolstering the Mental Health of Students at HBCUs and other Predominantly Black Institutions.
Actively seeking funds for Right2ReadPhilly FAMILY WONDER SERIES, playful-learning-together workshops designed for the whole family, striving to fill a major gap in regional offerings.
Celebrated 25th year with launch of new branding, including a new logo our team insists on calling “Richard Gear,” a new website and four community events.
2026
The year begins, full of hope and promise (and maybe a little dread…). And that’s just thinking about the Eagles playoff run.
Kicking off in January is an exciting venture with the Philadelphia Department of Records to help brand and promote a series of events bringing their unparalleled artifacts and archivist expertise to communities across the city.
In February, don’t miss the agency-branded “STILL WE TEACH. STILL WE RISE.” fundraising campaign, banquet and summit from the Center for Black Educator Development—all to advance the teaching of Black history and the rebuilding of the national Black teacher pipeline.
This spring, stay tuned for the OUR WORDS HEAL relaunch, showcasing trauma healing experiences in Philadelphia, Atlanta and soon Chicago.
Our early literacy work will continue as we help Vanguard tell their compelling tri-city Strong Start for Kids™ story.
Christian Rub joins as Senior Web Developer/Designer.
Brandon Oakley joins as Video Specialist & Social Media Manager.
Approach
Our work is...
01
Research‑Driven
We insist on following the data to guide our planning and creativity.
02
Culture‑First
We deeply appreciate the power of culture and community expertise.
03
Psychological
Changing minds is critical to changing outcomes.
04
Community‑Centered
There’s nothing wrong in our communities that can’t be solved by what’s right in them.
05
Urgent
We move deliberately, guided by the realities of the moment.
Core Team
Heseung is our fearless leader, and that’s no joke. About trying new ideas and blazing new paths. About always pushing us to excellence. Most of all, about her convictions and sense of what’s right. An Ivy League psychologist, she earned her stripes as a teacher, coach, counselor, mentor and nonprofit leader before launching Mighty Engine in 2000. A magna cum laude graduate of Yale, she holds a Master’s in education and a doctorate in psychology from Harvard. If you want to see her smile, just ask about her son.
A versatile problem-solver, Jennifer oversees hiring, bookkeeping and vendor relationships.
- Expertise: Working efficiently and effectively under intense pressure.
- Passions: Making sure my cat is always living her best life.
- Fun fact: Grew up lucky number 8 of 13 siblings.
A lover of history, technology and all things space-related, Steven helps us keep our voice mighty.
- Expertise: Communicating complex ideas through simple, compelling text.
- Passions: Reading, long road trips and making things out of wood that kinda look like something.
- Fun fact: Once shared an elevator with Jesse Jackson while he was campaigning for President. Yes, I’m that old.
A thoughtful, creative soul who values intentionality, representation and connection. Laureen brings warmth, resilience and purpose to everything she does.
- Expertise: Branding, illustration, print design and delivering designs that resonate.
- Passions: Creating communal spaces in virtual reality, collecting Squishmallows and Hello Kitty, crafting mini masterpieces through nail art, and being the best dog mom to my lil homie, Bam.
- Fun fact: I got lost inside of a sensory exhibit at the Franklin Institute.
A visionary with bold creativity, Makiah’s multimedia products grab our hearts and keep our attention.
- Expertise: Taking on multiple tasks and creating meaningful and impactful content.
- Passions: I love creating something from nothing.
- Fun fact: I was a sculptor in another life!
Lauren uses her considerable talent to create designs that look great, inspire change and spark conversation.
- Expertise: Print design and illustration for nonprofits and mission-driven organizations.
- Passions: Running, hiking, coffee, and especially, dogs.
- Fun fact: Met Lauren Graham and all I could think to say is, “Hi, my name is also Lauren.”
Christian is a multidisciplinary web designer and front-end developer with over seven years of experience creating thoughtful, visually engaging digital experiences.
- Expertise: UX/UI design, web development, graphic design, and custom front-end solutions.
- Passions: Being creative and learning new skills.
- Fun fact: I’m a huge music nerd.
Brandon loves storytelling through video and content creation.
- Expertise: Creating an environment on a filming set that makes everyone comfortable regardless of experience.
- Passions: Sharing stories that are as diverse as the world we live in.
- Fun fact: Avid film watcher. I go to the movies weekly. (As long as there's something good.)
Kenn Bourne
Mighty Advisor
An entrepreneur, social worker, social activist and educator, Kenn advises us on many of our public health and trauma healing projects.
Omar Brown
Select Partner, Equipment Manager
Omar began his career as a videographer in 2016, working as a camera operator and technician on tour with major artists like New Edition and Lil Wayne.
Jose Ferran
Mighty Advisor
A community leader and lifelong activist for youth and trauma healing, Jose provides us invaluable advice and insight on many of our community outreach efforts.
Gilberto Gonzalez
Mighty Advisor
Gil was a long-time graphic designer and artist at Community College of Philadelphia. He was also an instructor at Taller Puertorriqueno, where he got to combine his passion for both design and expanding opportunities for underserved youth.
Nyrell Griffith
Select Partner, Videographer
Nyrell has more than 15 years experience helping plan, shoot and edit video projects. He has a passion for storytelling and deep technical expertise with sound, lighting and a variety of camera brands and systems.
Andrew Huth
Photographer
A world-traveling documentarian, Andrew is known for capturing truth and telling stories through his photography, especially related to forgotten and disenfranchised populations.
Jin David Kim
PR Specialist, Photographer
Canadian-born journalist and filmmaker Jin David Kim has written for the Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper, and has a background in politics, serving as communications director and political advisor to several civic leaders.
Carolotta Stafford
Mighty Advisor
A long-time community activist, Carolotta is an outreach worker and volunteer Reading Captain who has an extensive background in youth development and community engagement.
Lynne Taylor, Ph.D.
Statistician
President of Omnibus Research Services and a recently-retired statistician at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Taylor helps us plan, execute and analyze our biggest and most complex research projects.
Matthew Uffalussy
Web Developer & Strategist
A nationally-known developer now based out of Atlanta, Matt is our former web director who still advises and works with us on major web and online application projects.
Tim Williams
Select Partner, Videographer
A talented photographer and videographer, Tim knows how to create beautiful visuals for all kinds of clients, whether it's capturing the first forever kiss of newly-married couples or gourmet dishes of aspiring chefs.
Parker Dae Kim
Creative Intern
Parker, a Philly high school student, is a gifted creative who is passionate about community causes. He volunteers to support our community outreach, youth perspectives and original music tracks.
A mighty meaningful celebration.
To mark our 25th anniversary in 2025, we engaged in a year-long celebration in the Mighty Engine way—with partners, championing the causes we value.
Love
A party 25 years in the making.
In March we hosted a happy hour at our new offices to show our love for the colleagues, friends, partners and supporters—both past and present—who’ve made the last 25 years so memorable for us all.
What a long, wonderful trip it’s been.
Equity
A little compassion can go a long way.
We jumpstarted our yearlong celebration of pro bono projects with the extraordinary Compassion Center of Georgia.
It was our pleasure to help them rebrand and launch a new website to help strengthen and expand their vital and impactful trauma-healing efforts. It’s no wonder they call themselves “the heart of Georgia.”
Service
A day of service, and hours of fun.
Muhammad Ali (not only a world champion boxer, but also an inspiring philosopher) once said: “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”
Words we try to live by.
To be of direct service to others, we spent a beautiful autumnal afternoon in West Philly’s Clark Park to lend a hand to tireless Reading Captain Andrea Blassingame and her colleague, Gerald L. Jackson, at the Luxury family literacy event that was attended by more than 80 people.
Agency
Generating some heat to help youth entrepreneurs.
The final major pro bono project we took on as part of this celebration was with Gangsta to Growers, a remarkable organization in Atlanta that helps build worker-owned agricultural cooperatives with community members.
Their signature product, Sweet Sol hot sauce, is produced, marketed and distributed by young entrepreneurs rooted in shared responsibility. The sales help sustain the nonprofit’s programming.
Over the course of several months, we worked with them to create a marketing plan, produce a promotional video and create social media strategies to support their Giving Tuesday campaign.