Colleen Jordan - Westhampton Beach UFSD

Colleen Jordan is going to be an artist. That has always been her plan. She just needed to determine how she was going to channel her creativity into a career. According to her, things first fell into place freshman year at Westhampton Beach High School when she came across an Academy brochure and read about the Art, Design, and Visual Communications Program.

“My family is very into the arts and I wanted to do something other than painting. I always liked the computer more and when I saw this class in the pamphlet, I pretty much fell in love with it just from the title,” she said. Colleen is referring to the heavy emphasis on computer graphic arts in the class.

She began the program in her junior year and has no regrets. The industry-related projects, assignments for actual clients, new equipment and techniques, and her classmates and teacher made such a positive impact on her that she returned for her senior year and hopes to attend SUNY New Paltz in the fall to major in graphic design.

Along the way, Colleen has experienced some standout success. During her junior year, her poster design for the Long Island Media Arts Show was selected to promote the event in every school across the region. She also qualified to compete at the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Louisville, KY, last summer where she placed eighth in the nation in the T-shirt design and presentation category. Said Colleen, “It was pretty surreal.”

Learning about the many other aspects of the business, such as client interaction, and having opportunities to take on assignments that provide this experience makes Colleen feel fortunate. “I just really want to work in the industry, and seeing that I can definitely do it gives me a lot more confidence, she said. “I am definitely glad that I took this class.”

Click here to read about our Art, Design, and Visual Communications Program