University of the Ozarks’ Smarter System to Share and Protect Its History

A legacy of education and community

Founded in 1834, University of the Ozarks (U of O) is a private liberal arts institution in Clarksville, Arkansas, serving around 900 students from 25 countries. As the oldest university in the state, U of O has a long history of academic excellence and close-knit community life rooted in faith and service. With that legacy comes a growing collection of photos documenting campus life, events, and traditions. The marketing team needed a better way to manage those assets, maintain brand consistency, and make visual content more accessible.

The challenge: Limited tools for campus content

Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment, Amy Lloyd, oversees all content requests, photo management, and brand communication across campus. Her small team works closely with athletics, admissions, and other departments to capture and share the university’s story every day. But as the demand for visual content increased, their storage systems couldn’t keep up. 

Key challenges included:

• Outdated storage made collaboration difficult. The athletics department relied on Dropbox and OneDrive for photo sharing, which quickly maxed out storage and complicated access. Amy explained that,“when we had photos of events, coaches wanted those as soon as possible,” but couldn’t get them quickly enough for timely updates on social media.
• Commencement photos weren’t easily shared. After major events, the team would post only a handful of pictures to social media, leaving many families unable to find photos of their graduates. “We didn’t have a way to share commencement photos with the public and parents,” said Amy. “We missed a lot.”
• Brand inconsistencies caused confusion. When media outlets requested photos or logos, they sometimes pulled outdated versions from old files. Without a centralized source of approved assets, the university’s visual identity wasn’t always consistent.
• Photo requests slowed down the team. Staff and faculty frequently needed images for presentations or reports, but had no direct access to the library. Amy shared, “We were getting every request in our office to stop, pause, and go look for photos.” Each request pulled the marketing team away from more strategic work.

“If somebody across campus, whether it’s a faculty member or the president, was just trying to make a PowerPoint presentation for our advancement team or for a donor, they had to request a photo from marketing, and then we had to dig through and provide them things, or try to understand what they were looking for.”

Amy Lloyd, Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment, University of the Ozarks

The solution: A single source of truth and consistent branding

Before PhotoShelter, every request for photos required manual effort, and sharing assets across departments was time-consuming. Now, University of the Ozarks has a single system that connects teams, maintains quality control, and ensures consistency across every channel.

Here’s what changed:

• Departments can collaborate from anywhere. With athletics falling under the enrollment division, Amy added specific access in PhotoShelter for that department. Coaches and photographers now have direct access to photos, whether they’re at home or traveling, and can easily create timely social posts after games.
• Locked templates maintain quality control. The marketing team integrated PhotoShelter with Canva, allowing staff to build graphics from approved photos and templates. “We have quality control before they are sent out,” said Amy, ensuring every piece of content reflects the university’s brand.
• Families can easily access event photos. With organized galleries in PhotoShelter, parents and students can download photos from commencement, homecoming, or orientation. “It’s worked really well for us,” Amy said. “Families can save pictures of their kids.”
• Approved media assets are always available. The marketing team now maintains a public folder of official campus photos and logos. “There are several nice campus shots on there,” Amy explained. “We know there are standard or generic photos that are approved.”
• Public albums strengthen community connection. Creative Director, Karlee Swartz, highlighted how organized galleries by year and semester make sharing easier for everyone. “PhotoShelter’s a good asset for our students, parents, families, and alumni,” she said. “If someone asks for Homecoming photos, I can share the link to the entire album.”

“PhotoShelter allows us to have different galleries for different projects. If people want to plug in a campus photo or if Career Services is doing a presentation on internships, we can share the photos from the recent career fair. So not only does it allow them to pick out what they’re really trying to achieve, it has saved the marketing team time.”

Amy Lloyd, Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment, University of the Ozarks

A stronger system for stronger storytelling

University of the Ozarks now has a visual content system that matches its values of community and connection. Departments can find what they need instantly, brand consistency is protected, and sharing meaningful moments is easier than ever.

“PhotoShelter’s working really well for us, it’s very effective, and we’ve been very pleased.”

Amy Lloyd, Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment, University of the Ozarks