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Meet Our Faculty: Kerry Gonzales

Kerry Gonzáles

Associate Professor / Graphic Design Specialization Rep
Visual Art & Design
School of Arts, Communication and Media

What she teaches:
Beginning Type & Layout; Advanced Type & Layout; Advanced Design; Package Design; Advertising Workshop; Advanced Independent Studies; Exploring Art.

Number of years teaching at SLCC:
20.

Undergraduate:
University of Utah.

Why working at SLCC matters:
The diversity of SLCC has a positive influence on helping our students learn compassion for others and responsibility for themselves. With open enrollment, more students have access to higher education and job training.

Greatest professional challenge: 
Our Graphic Design students need to be ready for the workforce upon graduation. Because SLCC is a two-year college, our students are not only in competition with students from four-year institutions, but also with graphic designers already working in the field. As a result, the Graphic Design program is designed to be very comprehensive. We work very hard to cover as much as possible to help our students succeed. Time is always the challenge. However, our successful alumni are proof of a successful program!


Greatest professional accomplishment:
Maintaining a strong ongoing connection with alumni! The ability to work with students from beginning through advanced capstone classes and then onto graduation and beyond, has been so rewarding. I maintain contact with over 200+ alumni and regularly invite them to be guest speakers/reviewers in my classes. When current students work directly with alumni, they can see that a career is possible. The INK website as well as the INK Shows I promote each fall showcase this alumni connection. Visit the site at inkslcc.wordpress.com

Advice for students or others:
Raising the bar is a good thing. If projects or assignments are always easy, what's the point of taking a college class? A good project challenges students to think critically. To succeed, students need to be passionate, problem-solvers, self-starters, persistent and reliable. They need to demonstrate responsibility and be able to handle consequences. However, the most important, or at least in the top 10 of the attributes list, is the ability to maintain a good attitude. I’ve seen so many talented people fail or not progress because of their bad attitude. Conversely, I’ve seen many with average beginning skills, become very successful primarily because of a positive attitude and a willingness to keep trying and learning.


Future plans:
To improve the graphic design program as much as I can by continuing to look for educational opportunities and incorporating them in my classes. I look forward to working with the Graphic Design Faculty to actively promote and recruit potential students. 

Family: 
The motto in our family is, “It is good to be different.” I am married to Alex, to a wonderful Renaissance man who is the most talented and interesting person I know. Alex works in the commercial printing industry. I am so very proud of my wonderful son, Kevin, who graduated from Westminster College in Marketing. He has worked as a Senior SEO Strategist in the Retail industry for several years. Our family also includes two Sheltie dogs and two Calico Tabby cats. Of course!

Hobbies:
Reading, reading and reading! A little gardening and roaming unsupervised through antique stores. I support various nonprofit organizations and I stand for human rights, equality, the environment, animal rights, education, the arts, common sense, compassion and responsibility, among others.






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